WEST EVDIA GUIDE. 



ROYAL MAIL STEAM PACKET COMPANY, 



INCORPORATED BY ROYAL CHARTER. 



JOHN IRVING, Esq., M.P., Chairman. 
ANDREW COLVILE, Esq., Deputy Chairman. 

THOMAS BARING, Esq., M.P. 

GEORGE BROWN, Esq. 

ROBERT COTESWORTH, Esq. 

RUSSELL ELLICE, Esq. 

GEORGE HIBBERT, Esq. 

JOHN IRVING, Jan., Esq. 

MICHAEL M'CHLERY, Esq. 

CHARLES EDWARD MANGLES, Esq. 

THOMAS MASTERMAN, Esq. 

HENRY NELSON, Esq. 

Saarlr of fHanagement. 

CHARLES EDWARD MANGLES, Esq. 
CAPTAIN CHAPPELL, R.N. 
CAPTAIN LIOT. 



Secretary. 

EDWARD CHAPPELL, Captain, R.N. 



GUIDE 

TO THE 

WEST INDIES, MADEIRA, 
MEXICO, 

NORTHERN SOUTH-AMERICA. 

COMPILED FROM DOCUMENTS SPECIALLY FURNISHED BY THE AGENTS 
OF THE 

ROYAL MAIL STEAM PACKET COMPANY, 

THE BOARD OF TRADE, 
AND OTHER AUTHENTIC SOURCE-. 

WITH CHARTS AND OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS. 

y 

BY JOHX OSBORNE, 



Oji'rtr 12trtttott, 

CONTAINING THE COMPANY'S LATEST REGULATIONS ESSENTIAL TO 
PASSENGERS AND MERCHANTS. 



LONDON: 

SOLD AT THE COMPANY'S OFFICE, MOORCATE STREET, 
OX BOARD THE SHIPS, 

AND MAY EE HAD THROUGH THE AGENTS ABROAD 
AND OF ALL BOOKSELLERS. 



0* y 



LONDON : 
WALTON & MITCHELL, 

PRINTERS TO THE COMPANY, 

Wardour St., Oxford St. 



•x 



ft 



IK 



ADVERTISEMENT. 



FROM THE PREFACE TO SECOND EDITION. 

" The favourable manner in which the first edition 
of the Guide was received, has stimulated me to 
render the present Work as complete as possible. 
It is enlarged to fully twice the amount of matter 
contained in the first edition. New information has 
been obtained from the Royal Mail Steam Packet 
Company's Agents abroad, in reply to a new series of 
questions; the history of each colony has been en- 
larged; their peculiar laws and government explained; 
and notice has been made of some new sources of 
trade and manufacture: in fact the work may be said 
to have been written anew. A chapter on health and 
climate is also added. 

"To B. Wyon, Esq., I am indebted for the copies 
of the colonial seals attached to each island, as they 
are taken from his beautiful designs. 

"To G. R. Porter, Esq., of the Board of Trade, 
I am indebted for the Statistics of the British Colo- 
nies. They are now for the first time published, 



Tl 



PREFACE. 



and cannot fail to be interesting to all concerned in 
these important dependencies of Great Britain." 

To this Edition tables are added, showing the hours 
of arrival and departure of the steamers at each of 
the ports visited. A plan of one of the ships is also 
given, which will facilitate the choice of cabins to 
persons at a distance ; for, as the Transatlantic 
steamers are fitted nearly alike, any number of 
berth on the plan being chosen, a corresponding 
cabin in the steamer about to sail may be obtained if 
not previously engaged. All the regulations inte- 
resting to passengers are comprised under one head, 
and are now inserted in the English, French, and 
Spanish languages. The reduced scale of freights 
for cargo and small packages is also fully given. 

Since this work has been printed, the population 
returns of the West India Islands and British Guiana 
have been issued by order of the House of Commons, 
and extracts of all that can interest the reader are 
added in an Appendix. 

J. O. 

Royal Mail Steam Packet Company's Office, 
London, September, 1845. 

P.S. Any new information addressed to me at this office 
will be thankfully received. 



CONTEXTS. 



Page 

List of Directors of Royal Mail 
Steam Packet Company. ... ii 

R. M. S. P. Co.'s Ships xi 

Foreign Agents xii 

Times of Departure of the 
Ships to the various Islands xiii 

Passenger Fares xiv 

Intercolonial Fares xv 

Times of Arrival and Departure 
at and from each place by 

the Company's Ships ib. 

Plan of Routes xviii 

Regulations for Passengers . . xix 
Rules to be observ ed on board xxii 
Reglements relatifs aux Voya- 

geurs xxiv 

Reglements qui doivent etre 

observes a bord xxviii 

Articulos Reglamentarios, rela- 
tives a los Pasageros xxxi 

Reglas que nan de Observarse 
a Bordo xxxv 

Prices of Wines on board . .xxxvii 

Cargo xxxviii 

Rates of Freight xxxix 

Postal Table xlii 

Railway Information, &c xliii 

Application for Berths, See. . . 1 
London to Southampton, In- 
structions as to baggage, &c. 2 

At Sea 4 



Madeira °s 

Obtaining Passports for .. 11 

Climate of 12 

Barbadoes 23 

Imposition of Crown Duties 25 

Repeal of Ditto 26 

Constitution of Laws ib. 

Appearance of Cane Fields 27 

Codrington College 28 

Statistics of 29 

Grenada 31 

Constitution and Laws .... 32 
?«ever subject to Crown 

Duties 33 

Statistics 35 

Trinidad 38 

Duties on Imports 40 

Government of 42 

Indian Village in 44 

Pitch Lake 46 

Mud Volcanoes 47 

Statistics 48 

Tobago 49 

Courland Bay 50 

Never subject to Crown 

Duty 51 

Statistics ib. 

Dlmerara 53 

Georgetown 55 

Government of 56 



viii 



CONTENTS. 



Page 



Temperature and Salubrity 58 

Essequibo River 59 

Agricultural Society at. .. . 60 

Statistics 61 

Jacmel 63 

Population of Hayti 56 

Constitution of Ditto .... ib. 

Jamaica 69 

Attempt to govern by 

Charles II 72 

Government of 73 

Duty on Importation .... 75 

Kingston 76 

Silk Company 79 

Agricultural Association . . 81 

Seal 84 

Statistics 82 

Havana 85 

Taken by the British, 1672 87 

Volantes 89 

Passports, necessity for . . ib. 
Official Notice 

on 90 

How obtained 91 

Population 92 

Royal Bank 93 

Periodical Literature .... 95 

Plaza des Armas 96 

Cathedral 99 

Remains of Columbus and 

Note ib. 

Steamers to St. Jago de 

Cuba, Matanzas, New 

Orleans 101 

Seasons 102 

Statistics 103 

Vera Cruz 105 

Nortes 106 

Orizava 107 

Coffer de Perote , 108 

Export Duty on Specie . . 109 

Passports to, obtained .... ib. 

French Attack, in 1838 . . 110 

Hotels, Markets 113 

Mode of Travelling 114 

Packet Ships to and from . 115 

Mines of Mexico 116 

Present Constitution 118 

Statistics 122 

Tamfico 123 



Page 



Nortes 124 

Hotel ib. 

Nassau 126 

Wreckers at 127 

Monies „. . . 129 

Government of 130 

Statistics 131 

Bermuda . , 133 

Scene of Shakspere's "Tem- 
pest" 136 

Monies 138 

Mails from England via 

Halifax ib. 

Laws of 139 

Neglect of Agriculture. .. . 140 
Encouragement of Emigra- 
tion to 141 

Statistics ib. 

St. Vincent 144 

Souffriere, Irruption of . . 146 

Botanic Garden 151 

Mineral Springs 152 

Government of 153 

Statistics 154 

St. Lucia 157 

Sulphur Hill, described . . 158 

Stars 161 

Laws ib. 

Statistics 162 

Martinique 165 

Hurricane, effects of a.... 166 

Description of 168 

No Passports required by 

Steamers 169 

Monies 170 

Beauty of Women ....... ib. 

Number of Slaves 171 

Dominica 172 

Climate 174 

Laws 175 

Statistics ib. 

Guadaloupe 178 

Legislature 179 

Number of Slaves 180 

Antigua 181 

Government 182 

English Harbour 183 

St. John's 184 



CONTENTS. 



Page 

Need for Municipal Laws . 185 

A Bishopric ib. 

Passed at once from Slavery 

to perfect Freedom 186 

Fossils 187 

Statistics 188 

MONTSERRAT 190 

Subjected to Crown Duties 191 
Curious Acts of Assembly ib. 
Original Settlers, Irish.... ib. 

Brogue Anecdote ib. 

A ) loses 192 

SoufFriere, Description of. . 193 
Statistics 194 

Nevis 196 

Landing 197 

Mineral Springs 198 

Statistics' 199 

St. Christopher 201 

Government of 202 

Mount Misery 203 

Good Hotels 204 

Statistics 205 

Tortola 207 

Virgin Isles ib. 

Landing 209 

Statistics ib. 

St. Thomas 211 

Low Import Duties ib. 

Landing 212 

Monies, Banks ib. 

St. Croix 213 

Climate 214 

Imports 215 

St. Juan's, Porto Rico 216 

Cultivated partly by Whites 217 

Monies 218 

Passports required 219 

Spanish Packet to Havana 220 
Statistics 300 

St. Jago de Cuba 221 

Passports, Luggage ib. 

Hotels 222 

Steamers to Havana, &c. . ib. 

Cobre Copper Mines .... 223 

Statistics 299 

Belize, Honduras 228 

Derivation of Name 230 



Page 

Election of Magistrates . . 231 

Making Laws ib. 

How Governed 232 

Climate 234 

Products 235 

Statistics 236 

La Guayra 238 

Difficult Landing 239 

Passports not required .... 240 
Description of Country 242 
River in which Evening 
Parties are held 243 

Puerto Cabello 245 

Aqua Caliente 247 

Ship Live Cattle ib. 

Clothing 247 

Santa Martha 248 

Monies 249 

High Duties on Apparel . . ib. 
Journey to Bogota, parti- 

ticulars 250 

Statistics 253 

Carthagena 254 

Fairs at \ ib. 

Landing and Monies 255 

Statistics ib. 

Chagres 256 

Mode of crossing Isthmus, ib. 

Gorgona and Cruces 257 

Roads to Panama 258 

To get Mules 259 

Panama, description of . . ib. 

Expense of Travelling 260 

St. Juan de Nicaragua .... 261 

Lake ib. 

Products 263 

Constitution ib. 

Projects for Canal between 

Atlantic and Pacific... ib. 
Charts of the Isthmus of 

Panama 265 

Remark of M. Guizot ib. 

Admiral Roussin 266 

Messrs. Salomons' Claim., ib. 
Favorite Projects with Pitt ib. 

Lloyd's Survey 267 

Panama safe for ships .... 268 
Wheelwright's Remarks.. 270 
Road easily made 271 



X 



CONTENTS. 



Page 



Canal by Nicaragua Lake 272 
Bentham's Project 273 

Canal by Tehuantepec. . . . 274 

Garay's Survey ib. 

River Coatzacoalcos 275 

Contrast with Panama, &c. 280 

Azores — Fayal 287 

Burning Island .... ib. 

Ville de Horta ?S8 

Landing 289 

Prohibited Articles 290 

Monies ib. 

Calderia 291 

Pico 293 



Page 



Homewards 294 

Southampton .......... 297 

Luggage ib. 

Bargate 299 

Appendix I. Census of Popu- 
lation of British West In- 
dies and British Guiana 
for 1844 301 



Appendix II. Return of Im- 
ports of Sugar, Molasses, 
Rum, Coffee, and Cocoa 
into the United Kingdom 
for 1844. 

Advertisements. 



( xi ) 



LIST OF THE COMPANY'S VESSELS. 



SHIPS of 1800 Tons, 500 horse power each. 



AVON Captain Norton. 

CLYDE „ Symons. 

DEE Hemsley. 

FORTH „ Chapman. 

MED WAY ,, Andrews. 

SEVERN „ Vincent. 

TAY ,, Sharp. 

TEVIOT „ Allan. 

THAMES „ Hast. 

TRENT ,, Boxer. 

TWEED Parsons. 

Of 700 Tons and 300 horse power each. 

CITY OF GLASGOW Captain Sturdie. 

REINDEER „ May. 

SCHOONERS. 

LIFFEY ,, Restarrick, 

LARNE Valler. 

LEE ,, Greaves, 



( xii ) 



^Foreign %Lqzxtt$* 

Barbadoes Messrs. M. Cavan and Co. 

Bermuda E. B. Todd, Esq. 

Carthagena C. E. K. Kortright, Esq. 

Chagres.. Julian Ramos, Esq. 

Demerara Peter Rose, Esq. 

Dominica Messrs. Dalrymple and Co. 

Fayal J, S. Minchin, Esq. 

Grenada Captain Leese. 

Guadaloupe S. Pedemonte, Esq. 

Hamburg E. Htjndeiker, Esq. 

Havana J. T. Crawford, Esq. 

Jacmel W. Larke, Esq. 

Jamaica R. Currie, Esq. 

La Guayra Messrs. Boulton, Phelps and Co. 

Madeira ,, Gordon, Duff and Co. 

Martinique D. O'Mullane, Esq. 

Montserrat Charles Griffin, Esq. 

Nevis James Davoren, Esq. 

Nicaragua Samuel Sheppard, Esq. 

Paris > Messrs. C. Delrue and Co. 

,, J. Glaenzer, Esq. 

Porto Cabello Messrs. Phelps and Evans. 

Santa Martha E. W. Mark, Esq. 

St. Jago de Cuba. . . . Messrs. Wright, Brooks and Co. 

St. Juan 1 s t Porto Rico R. D. Jacob, Esq. 

St. Kitfs Messrs. Berridge and Co. 

St. Lucia W. Muter, Esq. 

St. Thomas R. Comrie, Esq. 

St. Vincent Messrs. Le Gall, Graham, and Co. 

Tampico ,, S. L. Jolly and Co. 

Tortola C. F. Stout, Esq. 

Trinidad R. Dennistoun, Esq. 

Vera Cruz Messrs. Manning, Mackintosh & Co. 



( xiii ) 



The Steam Ships of this Company convey Passengers 
as folio ics : — 



Havana* 
Vera Cruz 
Tanipico 



2nd of Month- 
Honduras 
La Guayra* 
Porto Cabello* 



Due in England 7th of the Month from the above. 

17 th only. 

Bermuda 
Carthagena 
Chagres 

Due in England 7th of the Month from the above. 

Both 2nd and 1 7th. 



Santa Martha 
San Juan de Nicaragua 



Madeira 


Nassau 


Antigua 


Nevis 


Barbadoes 


Porto Rico 


Demerara 


St. Jago de Cuba 


Dominica 


St. Kitt's 


Grenada 


St. Lucia 


Guadaloupe 


St. Thomas 


Jacmel 


St. Vincent 


Jamaica 


Tobago 


Martinique 


Tortola 


Montserrat 


Trinidad 



Due in England 7th and 22nd of each Month, except Madeira. 
* Passengers can also proceed to these places by the 17th month packet. 



( xiv ) 

WEST INDIA PASSENGER FARES, 

Which include the use of Bedding and Linen, Steward's Fees, 
and all other Charges, except for Wines, Spirits, Malt 
Liquors, and Mineral Waters. 

This Company's Steam Ships leave Southampton at 2 p.m. on the 2nd and 
17th of each Month, unless the latter should be a Sunday, and then on the 
day following. 



Atlantic ¥c£ages, 

OUTWARD. 



steamer. 

HOMEWARD. 



PLACES. 



Antigua 

Barbadoes 
Bermuda .... 

Carthagena 
Chagres. . .... 

Demerara .... 

Dominica .... 

Grenada , ... 
Guadaloupe . . 

Havana 

Jacmel 

Jamaica 
Martinique .. 
Montserrat . . 

Nassau 

Nevis ~ 

Porto Rico . . 
St. Jago de Cuba 

St. Kitt's 

St. Lucia .... 
St. Thomas .. 
St. Vincent . . 
Santa Martha 
Nicaragua .... 
Tampico .... 

Tobago 

Tortola 

Trinidad .... 

Vera Cruz 

Madeira ...... 



Sinsle 
After 
Cabin, 



£45 
..42 
..55 
..60 
..60 
..45 
..45 
..45 
..45 
..56 
..50 
..50 
..45 
..45 
..60 
..45 
,.45 
..55 
,.45 
,.45 
,.45 
,.45 
..60 
..60 
.67 
.45 
.45 
.45 
.65 
.30 



Single 
Fore 
Cabin. 



£40 
..37 
..50 
..55 
..55 
..40 
..40 
..40 
..40 
..51 
..45 
..45 
..40 
..40 
..55 
..40 
..40 
..50 
..40 
..40 
..40 
..40 

•55 
-55 
..62 

• 40 

• 40 

• 40 
•60 
•26 



Double 
Fore Cab. 
per Berth. 



£35. 
..32. 
..45. 
..50. 
..50. 
..35. 
..35. 
..35. 
..35. 
..46. 
..40. 
..40. 
..35. 
.35. 
.50. 
.35. 
.35. 
.45. 
.35., 
.35., 
.35., 
.35., 
.50.. 
.50., 
.57.. 
.35.. 
.35., 
.35.. 
.55.. 
.22.. 



Fayal 



Singje 
After 


Singh 


Double 
Fore Cab. 
per Berth. 


-P47 
X^ ' 


^41 


X Uf J 


. .47 


41 


. • OO 


. .40 


• . oo 


. .30 


. . 55 


• . OKJ 


4^ 


. .55 


. . OVJ 


. . 45 


47 


41 


. . oo 


. .47 


41 


• . ou 


. .47 


41 


• . GO 


47 


41 


. . oo 




• « *±D 


AO 


• • OKJ 


4^ 
• • HcO 


AO 


» • OKJ 


4^ 


AO 


..47 


..41 


..35 


..47 


..41 


..35 


..50 


..45 


..40 


..47 


..41 


..35 


••47 


..41 


..35 


• •50 


..45 


..40 


.-47 


..41 


..35 


• •47 


•41 


• •35 


..47 


••41 


..35 




..41 


..35 


••55 


.-50 


..45 


••55 


• •50 


..45 


-67 


••62 


• •57 


••47 


..41 


-.35 


..47 


••41 


.-35 


..47 


..41 


••35 


••65 


.-60 


.-55 


••17 


-■-17 


••17 



( ) 



Outward and Homeivard by Steamers — and Inter colonially by 
Sailing Vessels. 
OUTWARD. HOMEWARD. 



PLACES. 


Single 
After 
Cabin. 


Single 
Fore 
C . 


Double 
Fore Cab. 
per Berth. 




Sinsle 
After 
Cabin. 


Singlei Double 
Fore Fore Cab. 
Cabin. 'per Berth. 




£50 
..50 
..60 


£45 
..45 
..55 


£40.. 
..40.. 
..50.. 


£50 
..50 
..60 


£45 
..45 
..55 


£40 
..40 
..50 



The difference in the rates of Passage Money between After and Fore Cabins refers merely 
to the position of the Sleeping Cabin ; in all other respects the Passengers will be pre- 
cisely on the same footing 



fcS=> Arrangements, on reasonable terms, may be made by In- 
valids or others desirous to take the round of the Voyage. 



TABLES OF ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE 

AT and FROM each Port. 

Shewing the regular course of each Atlantic Steamer, from Southampton and 
back to Southampton, when not diverted by casualty, or orders from the Com- 
pany's Superintendents abroad. 

By this Table it is understood that the Reindeer performs the Route from 
Grenada to Demerara and back to Grenada; and that the City of Glasgow 
performs the Route from Grenada to Trinidad and back to Grenada. 

The hours for Arrival and Departure will always be as shewn ; but the 
dates only apply to the month of 30 days : when the month has 31 days, the 
dates will be one day earlier than stated in this Table. 

Steamer of 2xd of each Month. 



DATES. 












PLACES. 




*3 2 
J 1? 


Arrival. 


Departure. 










2nd 6 P.M. 


Southampton - 












9th Midnight] 10th 6 A.M. 


Madeira - 


1,287 


1,287 


23rd Midnight; 24th Midnight 


Barbadoes - 


2,610 


3,897 


25th 6 P.M. 


26th 6 A.M. 


Grenada - 


140 


4,037 


26th 6 P.M. 


26th 8 P.M. 


St. Vincent 


78 


4,115 


26th Midnight 27th 2 A.M. 


St. Lucia - 


53 


4,168 


27th 7 A.M. 


27th 9 A.M. 


Martinique 


45 


4,213 


27th 2 P.M. 


27th 4 P.M. 


Dominique - 


40 


4,253 


27th 9 P.M. 


27th 11 P.M. 


Guadaloupe - - 


45 


4,298 


28th 6 A.M. 


28th 8 A.M. 


Antigua - 


70 


4,368 


28th Noon. 


28th 2 P.M. 


Montserrat - - - 


32 


4,400 


28th 6 P.M. 


28th 8 P.M. 


Nevis - - - - 


33 


4,433 


28th 10 P.M. 


28th Midnight 


St. Kitt's - - - 


11 


4,444 


29th 2 P. M. 


29th 4 P.M. 


Tortola - - - - 


128 


4,572 



Steamer of the 2nd of the Month — continued. 













DATES. 




o o . 








PLACES. 






• 

Arrival. 


Departure. 






29th 6 P.M. 


1st 6 P.M. 


St. Thoinasf - - 


23 


4,605 


2nd 6 A.M. 


2nd Noon. 


Porto Rico - 


65 


4,670 


2nd Midnight 


3rd 6 A.M. 


St. Thomas - - 


65 


4,605 


3rd 9 A.M. 


3rd 11 A.M. 


Tortola - - - 


23 


4,572 


4tn 4 A.M. 


4th 6 A.M. 


St. Kitt's - - - 


128 


4,444 


4tn 8 A.M. 


4th 9 A.M. 


Nevis - - - 


11 


4,433 


4th 1 P.M. 


4th 2 P.M. 


Montserrat - - 


33 


4,400 


4th 6 P.M. 


4th 8 P.M. 


Antigua - 


32 


4,368 


^fh A A M 

O 111 D A . ±Y1 • 


otn 7 A.1V1. 


Guadaloupe 


70 


4,298 


fifh Nnnti 


£fi> i p i\/r 
Otn l Jr.ivJ. 


Dominique - - 


45 


4,253 


5th 6 P.M. 


5th 8 P.M. 


Martinique - - 


40 


4,213 


6th 4 A.M. 


6th 6 A.M. 


St. Lucia - 


45 


4,168 


6th 2 P.M. 


6th 4 P.M. 


St. Vincent - - 


53 


4,115 


7th 6 A.M. 


11th 6 A.M. 


Grenada* - 


73 


4,037 


1 4fh Mirlnio-hr 

-1 I Lll J.VAIU.111^11 L 


IJlll O A.IVI. 


Jacmel - 


720 


4,757 


lULll IX U (J 11. 


1 AfK A P A/T 
loin O r.jyi.. 


Jamaica - - _ 


255 


5,012 


19th 6 A.M. 


19th Noon. 


Santa Martha - - 


440 


5,452 


1 Ail T% yf • T • 1 . 

19th Midnight 


20th 6 A.M. 


Carthagena- - - 


105 


5,557 


21st 6 P.M. 


22nd 6 A.M. 


Chagres - 


280 


5,837 


23rd 6 P.M. 


24th 6 P.M. 


Nicaragua - 


240 


6,077 


zoin o A.ivi. 


o/jfi, a t> i\/r 
zotn o r.ivl. 


Chagres - 


240 


5,837 


28th A P M 

£ O 111 U L . 1V1 , 


zytn o a.ivi. 


Carthagena- - - 


280 


5,557 


^t/tll IVllQIllgllt 


ouin rsoon. 


Santa Martha - - 


105 


5,452 


^11 U. O x . 1V_L. 


ora o Jr.ivi. 


Jamaica* - 


440 


5,012 


^ttll IVllCinigllL 


A A TVT 
/III D A.IVI. 


St. Jago de Cuba - 


190 


5,202 


om i>oon. 


yen iNoon. 


Jamaica - 


190 


5,012 


11th Noon. 


11th 6 P.M. 


Jacmel - 


255 


5,267 


i4tn lviianignt 


i CL+V. £ A i\/r 
J otn o A.iVl. 


Porto Rico - - - 


388 


5,655 


loin o Jr.ivi. 


1 Af l-» A A TVT 

10 in o A.ivi. 


St. Thomas* - - 


65 


4,605 


9 1 cf A A ivr 
ZlSl 0 A.iVl. 


zzna o A.ivi. 


Bermudaf - - - 


845 


5,450 


9AfK A A TVT 

zoin o a.ivi. 


o'rfU A A T\/T 

z/tn o A.ivi. 


Nassau - - - 


775 


6,225 


90fV« A A TVT 

zytn o a.ivi. 


orifl. A A 1\/T 

outn o a.ivi. 


Havana - 


360 


6,585 


4th 6 A.M. 


17th 6 A.M. 


Jamaica* - 


740 


5,012 


loin iNoon. 


zotn i\oon. 


St. Jago de Cuba - 


190 


5,202 


21st 6 P.M. 


24th Noon. 


Jamaica - 


190 


5,012 


26th Noon. 


26th 6 P.M. 


Jacmel - 


255 


5,267 


29th Midnight 


30th 6 A.M. 


Porto Rico - - 


388 


5,655 


30th 6 P.M. 


1st 6 A.M. 


St- Thomas* - - 


65 


1,605 


14th 6 A.M. 


15th 6 A.M. 


Fayal - - - - 


2,249 


3,854 


22nd 6 P.M. 




Southampton - - 


1,373 






Total 1 


;ime out 140 days. 


[6,906 


Miles. 





* Meets Steamer from England. t Meets Steamer to England. 



Steamer of the 17th of each Month. xvii 



DATES. 




2-2 u 








PLACES. 


ll! 




Arrival. 


Departure. 




i ~ 


i- 




1 7r>> A P AT 
1 / cn o Jr.ivx. 


Southampton - - 






S-tlll 311(_llilgni 


9^fV» A A Af 
ZD in 0 _A. 31. 


Madeira - 


1,287 


1,287 


OIU 311UIllgni 


jiD. 3iicinigni 


Barbadoes - 


2,610 


3,897 


1 flfVi A P AT 
lum o Jr.3±. 


1 1 f Vi A A A T 
1 ltn 0 A. 31. 


Grenada - 


140 


4,037 


11th 6 P.M. 


11th 8 P.M. 


St. Vincent 


78 


4,115 


11th Midnight 


12th 2 A.M. 


St. Lucia - 


53 


4,168 


12th 7 A.M. 


12th 9 A.M. 


Martinique 


45 


4,213 


12th 2 P.M. 


12th 4 P.M. 


Dominique - 


40 


4,253 


12th 9 P.M. 


12th 11 P.M. 


Guadaloupe - - 


45 


4,298 


13th 6 A.M. 


13th 8 A.M. 


Antigua - 


70 


4,368 


13th Noon. 


13th 2 P.M. 


Montserrat - - 


32 


4,400 


13th 6 P.M. 


13th 8 P.M. 


Nevis - - - - 


33 


4,433 


13th 10 P.M. 


13th Midnight St. Kitt's - - - 


11,4,444 


14th 2 P.M. 


14th 4 P.M. 


Tortola - - - - 


128|4,572 


14th 6 P.M. 


16th 6 P.M. 


St. Thomasf - - 


23j4,605 


17th 6 A.M. 


17th Noon. 


Porto Rico - - 


65 4,670 


17 th Midnight 


18th 6 A.M. 


St. Thomas - - 


65;4,605 


i nil r\ k a r 

18th 9 A.M. 


18th 11 A.M. 


Tortola - - - - 


23 


4,572 


19th 4 A.M. 


19th 6 A.M. 


St. Kitt's - - - 


128|4,444 


19th 8 A.M. 


19th 9 A.M. 


Nevis - 


11|4,433 


19th 1 P.M. 


19th 2 P.M. 


Montserrat - - - 


33j4,400 


1 OfV> A P AT 

iutn o x .jvi. 


19th 8 P.M. 


Antigua - 


32|4,368 


9flfh A A AT 


20th 7 A.M. 


Guadaloupe - - 


70 4,298 


zuin i>oon. 


20th 1 P.M. 


Dominique - - 


45 ! 4,253 


90th AP AT 


20th 8 P.M. 


Martinique 


40 


4,213 


91 cf A A AT 
£lSl 4 -A. 1V1. 


21st 6 A.M. 


St. Lucia - 


45 


4,168 


91 cf 9 P AT 


21st 4 P.M. 


St. Vincent - - 


53 


4,115 


oo nr ] A A AT 
zznci O A. 31. 


26th 6 A.M. 


Grenada* - 


78 


4,037 


29th Midnight 


30th 6 A.M. 


Jacmel - 


720 


5,267 


1st Noon. 


3rd Noon. 


Jamaica - - - 


255 


5,012 


7th Midnight 


10th 6 P.M. 


Havanaf - 


740 


6,583 


15th Noon. 


16th Noon. 


Vera Cruz - 


810 


7,393 


17th 6 P.M. 


22nd 6 P.M. 


Tampico - 


205 


7,598 


23rd Midnight 


3rd 6 A.M. 


Vera Cruz - 


205 


7,393 


8th 6 P.M. 


11th Midnight 


Havana* - 


810 


6,583 


13th Midnight 


14th Midnight 


Nassau - 


360 


6,225 


18th Midnight 21st Noon. 


Bermuda* - - - 


775 


5,450 


7th 6 P.M. 




Southampton - 


3,019 




Total time out, 110 days - - 


13,182 


Miles. 



* Meets Steamer from England, t Meets Steamer to England. 



INTERCOLONIAL. 

Trinidad Route — One Steamer every 15 Days. 
Starting at 6 P.M. on the 25th day after the 2nd and 17th of each Month. 



DATES. 


PLACES. 


Miles from 
place to 
place. 


Miles from 
England. 


Arrival. 


Departure. 




27&12,6P.M 
7&22,6A.M 
8 & 23, noon 


From Grenada - - 
To Trinidad - - - 
,, Grenada - 
,, Barbadoes - 




4,037 
4,131 
4,037 
3,897 


28&13,6P.M 
7&22,6P.M 
9&24,6P.M 


94 
94 
140 


Demerara Rou^e — One Steamer every 15 Days. 
Starting at Midnight on the 22nd day after the 2nd and 17th of each Month 


DATES. 


PLACES. 


is. 


II 


Arrival. 


Departure. 




24 & 9, Mid. 

25&10, Mid. 
5 & 20, Noon 
7&22 6,P.M 


From Barbadoes 
To Tobago* - - - 
,, Demerara - - 
,, Tobago*- - - 
,, Grenada - 




3,897 
4,027 
4,347 
4,027 
4,037 


25&10,6P.M 
28&13,6A.M 
7 &22,noon 
8&23,6A.M 


130 
320 
320 
85 


La Guayra Route — One Schooner every 30 Days. 

Starting at 6 A.M. on the 24th day after the 2nd of each Month. 


DATES. 


PLACES. 


is ■ 

£ ° 

BOS 


«*- aS 

JfL 


Arrival. 


Departure. 


29th 6 P.M. 
30th Midnight 
4th Midnight 
10th Noon. 
26th 6 A.M. 


26th 6 A.M. 
30th 6 A.M. 
2nd Midnight 
5th Noon. 
15th 6 P.M. 
26th 6 A.M. 


From Grenada - 
To La Guayra - - 
Porto Cabello - 
La Guayra - - 
,, St Thomas - 
,, Grenada - 


320 
68 
68 
480 
420 


4,037 
4,357 
4,425 
4,357 
4,605 
4,037 


Honduras Route — One Schooner every 30 Days. 

Starting at Noon on the 36th day after the 2nd of each Month. 


DATES. 


PLACES. 


<** o « 

CO « 

!#* 


£ s 


Arrival. 


Departure. 


18th Midnight 
1st Noon. 


8th Noon. 
20th Midnight 
8th Noon. 


From Havana - - 
To Belize, Honduras 
,, Havana - 


500 
500 


6,583 
7,083 
6,583 



* Courland Bay. 



50 

55 

15 

10 

20 

60 

25 

70 

45 

10 

25 



30 
115 
200 

85 
85 

100 
85 

120 
85 
50 
85 
85 



115 
35 
10 
165 
215 
25 
35 
30 



55 
30 
140 
30 
20 
125 
15 
35 
15 
75 
15 
35 
80 



85 
85 
65 
155 
95 
85 
100 



2101 150 



95 
70 
115 
20 
25 
165 
30 
75 
50 
115 
30 
10 
120 
40 



70 
155 
240 
125 



85 
*170 
250 
*140 



140 



125*140 



75 



125*140 



40 
130 170 
180220 

50 



10 

55 



175 215 



160 
125 

90 
125 
125 

50 
125 
125 



*175 
*140 
105 
140 
*140 
125 
*140 
*140 
135 



175 
135 
125 
140 
170 



115 
90 
115 
45 
45 
185 
50 
95 
75 
135 
50 
40 
140 
60 
40 
190 
240 



65 
40 
140 
30 
20 
135 
15 
45 
25 
85 
15 
35 
90 
10 
40 



115 



130 



245 
35 *135 
5*135 
185 70 



145 
*140 
150 



90*165 



80 



*135 
*170 



70*135 



25 

140 190 



100 

*135 
*135 
110 
601*135 
*135 
130 



135 
50 
30 

140 



190 240 



50 



60 
40 



15 235 



20 
60 



55.. 
1185 235 



15 
140 
*135 
145 



noney between the places mentioned via Grenada. 



( six ) 



REGULATIONS 

RELATIVE TO PASSENGERS. 



Booking. 

tg^ 3 No berth is considered engaged till the iv hole fare is paid. 

1. — Children of cabin passengers under three years of 
age are carried free of charge; above three years, and under 
eight years, to pay one-fourth the cabin-passage rate paid 
by their parents ; above eight years, and under twelve 
years, to pay one-half ditto ; but not entitled to a separate 
cabin. 

2. — Passengers' male servants to pay one-half, and female 
two-thirds the cabin-passage rate paid by their employers. 

3. — An abatement of one-sixth of the established rate of 
passage-money is to be made in favour of families consisting 
of not less than five persons, including adults, children 
above three years of age, and servants. 

4. — Dogs to be charged at one-eighth the fare paid by 
their owners. 

5. — Each adult passenger allowed to carry luggage, free 
of charge, to the extent of twenty cubic feet measurement ; 
children and servants in proportion. All extra luggage to 
be charged as for measurement cargo. 

6. — Merchandize, specie, &.c, cannot be carried under 
the name of luggage. All specie carried by passengers, 
above the value of £150, to be charged for at the usual 
rate of freight on specie. 

7. — Troops and other deck passengers are to be carried 
only inter colonially. To find their own provisions and bed- 
ding, and not admitted abaft the chimney. To pay one-fifth 
the cabin fare. 

8. — Passengers' servants cannot be booked as deck 
passengers. 

9. — Passengers not proceeding after taking their passage, 
to forfeit half the passage-money. 



INTERCOLONIAL VOYAGES. 

Fares in Silver Dollars. 



REGULATIONS. 



10. — Should any occurrence prevent the vessels from 
meeting at the appointed places, the Company does not 
hold itself responsible for the maintenance of passengers, 
or for their loss of time during any detention consequent 
thereon ; nor for any delay arising out of accidents ; nor 
for any loss, damage, or detention of luggage. 

11. — There is to be no difference in the fares between the 
fore and after cabins, so far as mere intercolonial passages 
are concerned ; the difference of fares being only intended 
to apply to transatlantic passages out and home. 

12. — Transatlantic passengers are always to have pri- 
ority of choice of cabins over intercolonial passengers, 
whether previously booked or not. This is not however to 
extend to the displacing of any intercolonial passenger from 
an after or fore cabin, while any other cabin of that de- 
scription is vacant. 

13. — Should any outward or homeward- bound passenger, 
who was originally booked for a fore cabin, shift to an after 
cabin, he is to be charged after cabin fare throughout. 

14. — Should any homeward-hound passenger originally 
booked for an after cabin, upon subsequent transhipment 
fail to obtain accommodation in an after cabin, he is to be 
charged only as a fore-cabin passenger throughout. 

15. — Should any owticard-bound passenger, originally 
booked for an after cabin, upon subsequent transhipment 
fail to obtain accommodation in an after cabin (as this can 
only occur when the voyage is nearly finished), he is to be 
allowed a deduction of five shillings per day for every day 
he is compelled to occupy such fore cabin. 

16. — Intercolonial passengers must not be booked farther 
than they can be conveyed by the vessel in which they 
embark, or by other vessels, expected to be met with, to 
which they can be directly transferred. 

17. — Before intercolonial passengers are booked, refer- 
ence should be made to the table of routes on which the 
ship is employed, as well as to the roster, in order to pre- 
vent mistakes, the fares being regulated so as to accord 
with the direction in which the vessel is proceeding; and 
when it happens that a passenger can be carried by more 



REGULATIONS. 



xxi 



than one course to his destination, the nearest is that for 
which the fare is calculated, and by which alone he can be 
conveyed for the amount specified. 

18. — After-cabin accommodation by the steamer return- 
ing to England from St. Thomas, via Fayal, is to be divided 
equally between passengers from Jamaica and those from 
the windward route; that is, the starboard after cabins 
may be secured at Jamaica, and the larboard after cabins 
are to be reserved for the Demerara and Windward Islands 
passengers; but if it should be found on arrival at St. 
Thomas that the passengers from one direction do not 
require accommodation to the extent provided, and there 
are more from the other direction than could previously 
secure after cabins, then such passengers are to have the 
disposable after cabins given to them, with priority of 
choice according to the dates of booking. 

19. — All passengers from the "West Indies proceeding to 
England, via Bermuda, will have to take their chance of 
obtaining after cabins when they reach the Mexican 
steamer. 

20. — When female servants are on board they are not to 
occupy or retain cabins while there are cabin passengers 
to accommodate. 

21. — The Spanish dollar to be taken in all the British 
possessions at the rate of 4s. 2d. sterling; the doubloon at 
64s. In Forei- n places it is to be received at the established 
sterling rate there prevailing. 

22. — In Foreign Ports the fares specified in the Inter- 
colonial Table are to be paid in silver dollars, or their 
equivalent in other current coin; this rule applies also to 
the British Colonies, except that notes of the Colonial Bank 
are to be taken as equivalent, when convenient to all 
parties. Five-franc pieces are to be received at the rate of 
four shillings each, when tendered in payment of freight 
or passage-money abroad. 

23. — Passengers are not allowed to take on board wines, 
spirits, or other liquors, for use during the voyage, an 
ample stock thereof being provided on board, at moderate 
prices. 



xxii 



REGULATIONS. 



24. — Passengers intending to embark will apply to the 
Agents, but the passage-money is to be paid on board. 

25. — Priority of choice of berths is to be given to persons 
who may have made first application to the Company's 
Agents, in the order in which they stand on a list to be fur- 
nished by them to the Captain. Other passengers, not 
mentioned on the Agents' list, will then have choice of 
cabins according to the order in which they apply on board 
the ship. 

26. — At places where the Company's vessels arrive and 
depart, at night, a gun is to be fired to announce their 
arrival, the moment the order is given to lower the mail 
boat. 

27. — Passengers are requested to conform to established 
regulations as respects passports, &c, especially in foreign 
ports. 

28. — A boat will be sent from each vessel to land and 
embark passengers, specie, and parcels. 



Rules to he observed on Board. 

29. — Every accommodation is to be afforded in embarking 
and landing passengers, and the Captain is to pay every 
attention to passengers, and impress upon those under his 
command the importance of this duty. 

30. — The Captain will frequently make enquiry of every 
passenger on board, whether they have been made as com- 
fortable as circumstances will admit, and should there be 
any cause for complaint, he will at once endeavour to 
remedy it. 

31. — The Officers of the watch are civilly to answer any 
question put to them by passengers, but they are to avoid 
entering into prolonged conversation with any person, that 
their attention may not be diverted from their proper duties. 

32. — The Captain is instructed, on commencing the 
voyage, to intimate to the passengers, that they are at 



REGULATIONS. 



xxiii 



liberty, if they wish, to select, from among their number, 
three gentlemen as a committee, for the purpose of inspect- 
ing daily or weekly and approving the bill of fare. 

33. — The hours for meals are — Breakfast from eight till 
nine o'clock. Luncheon from noon till one o'clock. Dinner 
from four till five o'clock. Tea and coffee from seven till 
eight o'clock. At one quarter of an hour previous to 
breakfast, dinner, and tea, a bell will be rung in order to 
give persons time to prepare. 

34. — The Wines to be supplied are Port, Sherry, Madeira, 
Hock, Champagne, Claret, and Moselle, to which prices 
are affixed, and a list of the same is to be kept constantly 
in the saloon. 

35. — All passengers who are not unwell are expected to 
take their meals at the public table, and to appear respect- 
ably dressed. 

36. — At eleven p.m. all cabin lights are to be put out, 
after which no wines, spirits, &c, are to be supplied, nor 
servants to be called, unless in case of sickness. No lights, 
except those in the fixed lanterns, to be allowed in the 
sleeping berths. 

37. — Sheets and pillow-cases are to be changed every 
eight days, on long voyages, and a clean towel to be allowed 
to every passenger daily. 

38. — Wearing apparel, or slippers, are not to be allowed 
to be left lying about out of the berths. 

39. — Smoking is not to be allowed either in the saloons 
or the berths, or the quarter-deck. The upper deck, before 
the funnel, is allowed for that purpose. 

40. — All games of chance are prohibited in every part 
of the ship during Sunday. 

41. — All the stewards and servants of every description 
are to keep themselves clean and decently dressed, under 
pain of dismissal. 

42. — On Sundays, Divine Service will be performed by 
the Captain, when the weather permits. 

43. — Heavy baggage is not allowed in the berths. Pas- 



REGLEMENTS. 



sengers are requested to select for their use during the 
voyage, trunks, portmanteaus, or boxes of a moderate size 
and readily moveable. Heavy baggage will be put into a 
baggage room, to which access can be had when it may be 
wanted, and at convenient times. The Company do not 
hold themselves liable for any damage or Joss of baggage, 
nor for unavoidable delays, accidents, fire, steam or sea 
risks of any kiud whatever. 

44. — In case of these Regulations being infringed, or of 
negligence, inattention or impropriety on the part of any of 
the servants, or any other ground for dissatisfaction, pas- 
sengers are requested to give notice immediately to the 
commander, who has full authority to act under such 
circumstances. 

By Order of the Court of Directors, 

E. CHAPPELL, Secretary. 

55, Moor gate Street, London, 
July 1st, 1845. 



REGLEMENTS 

RELATIFS AUX VOYAGEURS. 



Enregistrement. 

1°. — Les enfantsdes passagers recus dans les cabins, s'ils 
sont ages de moins de trois ans seront conduits franc de 
tout droit ; ceux au dessus de trois ans, mais au dessous 
de huit ans paieront le quart du prix paye pour la place 
de cabin de chacun de leurs pere et mere ; ceux au dessus 
de huit ans, mais au dessous de douze ans paieront moitie" 
de ce meme prix ; sans avoir droit a un cabin separe. 

2°.— Les domestiques males de chacun des passagers 



REGLEMENTS. 



XXV 



paieront moitie et les domestiques femelles les deux-tiers 
du prix de la place de cabin payd par chacun de ceux au 
service da quel ils seront. 

3°. — Une diminution d'un sixieme du prix de la place 
comme passager sera accordee aux families composees de 
cinq personnes au moins en y comprenant les adolescents 
les enfants au dessus de trois ans et les domestiques. 

4°. — Le prix des places des chiens sera d'un huitieme du 
prix de la place du maitre. 

5°. — Chaque adolescent recu a bord comme passager aura 
le droit de porter avec lui ses bagages franc de tout droit 
de transport, a raison de 20 pieds cubiques de dimension. 
Pour les enfants et domestiques une proportion sera etablie. 
Les frais de transports pour tous bagages, qui excede- 
raient la dimension prefixee seront elabJis d'apres le prix 
pay£ pour les marchandises de la cargaison en egard a la 
place qu'elles occupent. 

6°. — Les marchandises, colis, &c. &c, ne peuvent etre 
transposes sous le nom de bagages. Tout colis porte' par 
les passagers a bord, et qui excederait une valuer de £150. 
sera sujet au droit ordinaire de fret sur les colis. 

7°. — Les troupes ou autres passagers recus sur le pont 
y seront admis comme voyageurs de Colonie a Colonie ; 
partant ils seront tenus de se munir de leur propre pro- 
vision et lilerie; ils ne pourront se placer au derriere 
de la chemiuee ; ils paieront un cinquieme du prix d'une 
place de cabin. 

8°. — Les domestiques des passagers ne pourront etre 
enregistres comme passagers recus sur le pont. 

9°. — Les personnes qui ne partiront pas apres avoir 
retenu leur place perdront moitie du prix de leur place. 

10°. — Si quelque circonstance s'opposait a ce que les 
vaisseaux se trouvassent au lieu du rendez vous dans les 
endroits indiques, la compagnie ne se regarde pas comme 
obligee parce qu'elle detient les passagers a bord, ni 
responsable de la perte de terns qu'elle leur occasionne par 
cette detention, non plus que pour aucun delai que ce soit 
provenant d'accident, comme aussi en raison des pertes 
quelqu'elles soient, dommage ou retenue des bagages* 



xxvi 



REGLEMENTS. 



11°. — II n'y aura aucune difference de prix de places 
entre les cabins de devant et les arriere-cabins, pour tout ce 
qui concerne le simple passage de Colonie a Colonie ; la 
difference ne devant exister pour ces divers cabins, qu'en 
ce qui concerne le passage transatlantique, soit en cas de 
retour du vaisseau au port d'ou il est parti, soit en cas de 
fret pour 1'etranger. 

12°.— Les passagers recus a bord pour un voyage trans- 
atlantique auront toute priorite pour choisir les cabins, sur 
les simples passagers de Colonie a Colonie, qu'ils se soient 
ou non fait enregistrer avant eux ; mais ce privilege ne 
s'appliquera nullement a ceux des passagers de Colonie 
d. Colonie, ayant pris leur place dans Tune ou l'autre sorte 
de cabin, lorsqu'un de ces divers cabins viendrait a etre 
vacant. 

13°. — Tout passager qui prenant sa place a bord d'un 
vaisseau retournant au port d'ou il est parti, ou frete pour 
1'etranger aurait originairement ete enregistre pour une 
place de cabin de devant changera pour une place d'arriere- 
cabin devra n'etre tenu de payer que le prix d'une place a 
Var Here -cabin pour tout le voyage. 

14°. — Tout passager re^u a bord pour revenir au lieu 
d'ou il est parti et ayant ete' originairement enregistre' 
pour une place d'ar Here- cabin prendra par suite de change- 
ment de vaisseau place dans Yarriere-cabin ; ne sera tenu 
qu' a payer durant tout le voyage, pour une place du cabin 
de devant. 

15°.— Tout passager rec^i a bord pour revenir au lieu 
d'ou. il est parti et ayant ete originairement enregistre pour 
une place Yarriere-cabin prendra par suite de changement 
de vaisseau place dans Yarriere-cabin ; (ce qui ne peut 
arriver que quand le voyage est sur le point d'etre termine) 
aura droit a une deduction de 5 shillings par chaque jour 
qu'il sera oblige d'occuper semblable place. 

16°. — Les passagers recus a bord pour voyage de Colonie 
a Colonie ne pourront etre enregistres que jusqu' a 1'endroit 
ou ils pourront etre conduits par le vaisseau sur le quel ils 
s'embarquent, ou par tout autra vaisseau qu'ils pourraient 
rencontrer, sur les quels on les feraient passer sur le 
champ. 



REGLEMENTS. 



xxvii 



l7o. — Avant d'enregistrer des passagers allant de Colonie 
a Colonie Yon devra se reporter aux tables des routes que 
le vaisseau doit suivre comme aussi au Roster, pour eviter 
toute erreur le prix etaut regie de maniere a etre d'accord 
avec la direction que suivra le vaisseau. Lorsqu'iJ arrive 
qu'un passager peut etre conduit d'un trait a sa direction. 
Le point le plus rapproche est celui que Ton doit prendre 
pour calculer le prix et ce n'est que par lui que le voyageur 
peut etre conduit pour la somme specifiee. 

18°. — L'avantage des places oVarriere-cabin sur un vais- 
seau a vapeur revenant en Angleterre de St. Thomas par 
la route de Fayal sera egalement pour les passagers venant 
de la Jamaique que pour ceux venant par la route des lies 
sous le vent, de telle sorte que le tribord, de Yarriere- cabin 
soit retenu a la Jamaique et le babord, de Yarriere -cabin 
soit reserve pour les passagers, venant de Demerara et des 
iles sous le vent; mais si a. Tarrivee du vaisseau a St. 
Thomas il se trouve que les passagers qui suivent telle ou 
telle direction ne requierent point autant de placesqu'il leur 
en etait reserve et qu'il y en a plus qu'il n'en pourrait etre 
arrete d'avance dans Y arriere- cabin, les passagers peuvent 
user des arrieres-cabins avec la priorite du choix, conforme- 
ment a. la date de Tenregistrement de leurs places. 

19°. — Tous les passagers venant des iles occidentales 
pour se rendre en Angleterre par la voie de Bermuda, 
auront la chance d'obtenir des places dans Yarriere-cabin 
quand ils auront atteint le vaisseau a vapeur d'Amerique. 

20°. — Quand des domestiques femelles seront a, bord 
elles ne pouront occuper ni retenir des places dans les 
cabins, lorsque les passagers auront besoin de place dans 
les cabins. 

2\o. — Le dollar Espagnol sera rec,u dans toute Tetendne 
des possessions Anglaises pour 4 shillings 2 pence sterlings, 
et le doublon pour 64 shillings. Dans les pays etrangers 
il sera pris sur le pied de ce que vaut la livre sterling dans 
ces pays. 

22°. — Dans les ports etrangers le prix des places fixe 
dans les tables pour les passagers de Colonie a Colonie sera 
pay6 en dollar d'argent ou par toute autre monnaie courante 
equivalente a son prix. Cette regie s'applique aussi aux 



xxviii 



REGLEMENTS. 



Colonies Anglaises a cette exception pres que les bons de 
la Banqae Colonialle peuvent etre pris comme equivalent 
mais d'un commun accord entre les parties. Les pieces 
de cinq francs seront recus au prix de quatre shillings 
chaque, quand elles seront employees a payer le fret ou 
tout autre somme due pour passage a l'etranger. 

23°. — II ne sera pas permis aux passagers recus a bord 
d'y prendre avec eux des vins, esprits ou autres liqueurs 
pour leur usage durant le voyage le vaisseau en etant 
fourni d'une abondante provision qui sera delivree a des 
prix mode res. 

24°. — Tout passager qui voudra s'embarquer devra s'ad- 
resser pour ce a Messieurs les Agents, mais tout argent du 
pour passage devra etre paye a bord. 

25°. — La priorite du choix des places a coucher est 
accorde aux personnes qui se sont adressees les premieres 
a. Messieurs les Agents de la compagnie et ce dans le 
meme ordre qu'ils ont ete inscrits sur la liste remise par 
eux au capitaine. Tout autre passager non porte sur la 
liste de Messieurs les Agents n'aura de choix que suivant 
Tordre dans lequel il se sera adresse au capitaine a, bord. 

26°. — Dans les places ou les vaisseaux de la compagnie 
arrivent ou partent, dans la nuit un coup de canon est tire' 
pour annoncer leur arrivee au moment ou l'ordre est clonne* 
de baisser le mat de beaupre. 

27o. — Les passagers sont invites a se conformer aux 
reglements etablis touchant les passeports, et particuliere- 
ment dans les ports etrangers. 

28°. — Une chaloupe partira de chaque vaisseau pour 
embarquer ou mettre a cote les passagers, ballots et colis. 



Reglements qui doivent etre observes a bord. 

29 0 . — Toute espece de commodity sera apportee pour 
embarquer et desembarquer les passagers. Pour ce le 
capitaine mettra tous les soins desirables et tiendra for- 
mellement a ce que ceux qui sont sous son commandement 
executent fidelement leurs devoirs. 



REGLEMENTS. 



xxix 



30°. — Le capitaine s'informera frequemment aupres de 
chaque passager s'il se trouve parfaiternent a son aise autant 
que les circonstances pourront alors le permettre, et s'il 
arrive qu'il y ait quelque chose a. desirer pour cela il devra 
s'effbrcer de remedier a. tout inconvenient. 

31 0 . — Les officiers de garde devront repoudre a toute 
question, qui leur sera addressee par les passagers, mais 
ils doivent e viler d'entrer dans une conversation, surtout 
prolongee qui les distrairait de l'attenlion qu'ils doivent 
apporter a raccomplissement de leurs devoirs. 

32°. — Le capitaine recoit l'instruction de faire connoitre 
aux passagers qu'ils ont la liberie s'ils le desirent de choi- 
sir parmi eux trois Messieurs qui formeront un comite 
charge* de Inspection journaliere et hebdomadaire de la 
carte a payer comme aussi de la critiquer. 

33°. — Les beures de repas sont ainsi fixe'es : Dejeuners 
de 8 a 9 heures du matin ; gouters de midi a une heure ; 
Diners de 4 a 5 heures. The ou cafe de 7 a 8 heures du 
soir. Un quart d'heure avant le dejeuner le diner et le 
the la cloche sonnera pour donner a chaque personne le 
terns de se preparer. 

34°. — Les vins servis sur table, seront: Xeres O'Porto, 
Madere, Hock, Champagne, Bordeaux et Moselle, dont les 
prix seront fixes sur une etiquette suspendue a chaque 
bouteille ; de plus une liste de ces memes prix sera con- 
stamment placee dans le sallon. 

35°. — Tout passager qui ne sera pas malade devra pren- 
dre ses repas a la table commune et y paroitre decemment 
vetu. 

36°. — a Onze heures du soir toutes les chandelles des 
cabins seront eteintes et apres cette heure, aucun vin ou 
esprit ne sera fourni. Les servants ne pourront etre appeles 
qu'au cas de malaises. Aucune luraiere ne sera permise si 
ce n'est celle des lanternes suspendues qui sont autorisees 
dans les chambres a coucher. 

37°. — Les diaps et tayes d'oreillers seront changes tous 
les huit jours pour les voyages de long cours ; et un linge 
propre pour la toilette sera tous les jours fourni a chaque 
passager. 



XXX 



REGLEMENTS. 



38o. — II n'est pas permis de laisser trainer pres des places 
a coucher des habillements et pantoufles. 

39o. — II n'est pas r permis de fumer dans les salons dans 
les chambres a. coucher ou sur le pont de quartier. Le tillac 
place a la tete du vaisseau est la seule place permise pour 
cet effet. 

40°. — Tout jeu de hazard est defendu dans toutes les 
parties du vaisseau durant le dimanche. 

41°. — Tous les chefs d'office et servants de tout genre 
doivent etre proprement tenus et habilles decemment sous 
peine d'etre renvoyes. 

42°. — Les dimanches le service divin sera fait par le capi- 
taine autant qu'il fera en mer un terns qui le permette. 

43°. — Les gros bagages ne seront point introduits dans 
les chambres a coucher ; les passagers sont done invite's a. 
choisir pour leur usage journalier durant le voyage des 
malles porte-manteaux et boites d'une dimension ordinaire 
et faciles a, etre deplaces d'un endroit a un autre. Les 
gros bagages seront places dans le magasin aux bagages au 
quel tout passager aura facile acces toutes les fois qu'il 
aura besoin de s'y rendre, et ce dans un terns convenable. 
La compagnie ne s'engage pas personnellement a, repondre 
d'aucun dommage ou perte de bagages, non plus a. garantir 
contre les delais qu'elle ne pourrait eViter, comme aussi 
contre le feu, l'explosion de la vapeur, les risques de mer 
ou les consequences des mauvais terns qu'il ferait enmer, 

44°. — Dans le cas d'infraction a, ces reglemens ou de 
negligence inattention ou manque d'^gards de la part des 
servants quelqu'ils soient, ou enfin en cas de m6 contente- 
ment fonde les passagers devront en donner connaissance 
sur le champ au commandant qui est revetu de tous pouvoirs 
pour agir et sevir suivant les circonstances. 

Par Ordre de la Cour des Directeurs, 

E. CHAPPELL, Sicritaire. 



55, Rue de Moorgate, a, Londres. 
1 Juillet, 1845. 



( xxxi ) 



ARTICULOS REGLAMENTARIOS, 

RELATIVOS A LOS PASAGEROS. 



Asiento en el Libro de Entradas. 

1°. — Por los niilos de los pasageros que ocupan camarote, 
siendo menores de tres alios, nada se carga ; siendo may- 
ores de tres anos y no habiendo cumplido ocho arios, han 
de pagar una cuarta parte del precio correspondiente a la 
clase de camarote que sus padres ocuparen ; los que fueren 
mayores de ocho anos y sin haber completado su edad 
de doce anos, han de pagar una mitad del integro antedicho 
precio : mas sin opcion a ocupar camarote separado. 

2°. — Los criados de los pasageros pagaran una mitad, las 
criadas dos terceras partes del precio asignado a los cama- 
rotes ocupados por sus amos. 

3°. — De la cantidad asignada por precio del transito de 
cada persona, se rebajara una sexta parte en favor de fami- 
lias que consten no menos que de cinco individuos, inclu- 
yendo adultos, hijos majores de tres anos, y criados. 

4°. — Por los perros se ha de cargar una octava parte del 
precio que hubieren de pagar sus dueilos. 

5°. — A cada pasagero adulto se permite llevar, franco de 
porte un paquete 6 baul con sus muebles, que no exceda de 
la medida de veinte pies cubicos : a los hijos y criados en 
proporcion. Todo bagage extra, 6 ademas del ya expresado, 
se cargara como cargamento por medida. 

6°. — Las Mercancias, moneda en especie, &c, no se ad- 
mitiran bajo la denominacion de Maleta 6 mueble emba- 
razoso aunque necesario a. los Viajeros. Cuanta moneda 
en especie llevare un pasagero, excedente el valor de 150 
libras esterlinas, se cargara al precio acostumbrado del flete 
sobre la moneda en especie. 

7°. — Soldados y otros pasageros de sobre Cubierta solo 



XXxii ART1CULOS REGLAMENTARIOS. 



han de ser llevados inter colonialmente. Ellos han de pro- 
curarse sus provisiones, y camas, y no han de ser admitidos 
detras de la chimenea. Y han de pagar una quinta parte 
del precio de los que ocupan camarote. 

8°. — Los criados de los pasageros no se insertaran en el 
Libro de Entradas como pasageros de sobre cubierta. 

9°. — Los pasageros que, babiendo AJquilado sus cama- 
rote s, no se embarcaren, perdera,n la mitad del importe de 
su transiro. 

10°. — Si alguna ocurrencia casual impidiere a los Vajeles 
que se encuenlren en los sitios senalados, la compania no 
se cree responsable del mantenimiento de los pasageros, ni 
por la perdida de su tiempo durante cualquiera detencion 
que de ahi res ul tare ; ni por cualquiera dilacion resultante 
de accideutes; ni por ninguna perdida, dailo, 6 detencion 
del equipage u otros muebles. 

11°. — Ninguna diferencia habra en los precios de los 
camarotes de la parte anterior y posterior (6 de proa y 
popa) en cuanto a pasages meramente intercoloniales ; por 
que la deferencia de precios solamente se intento aplicar a 
los viajes transatlanticos de ida del suelo natal, 6 de retorno 
a e"l. 

12°. — Los pasageros Transatlanticos siernpre tendran la 
precedencia en la eleccion de camarotes sobre los pasageros 
intercoloniales hayan 6 no sido incriptos con antelacion de 
tiempo en los libros de entrada 6 asiento. Sinembargo, 
esto no hade llevarse al extremo de desalojar a ningun pa- 
sagero intercolonial de un camarote anterior 6 posterior, 
mientras que haya vacante otro camarote de aquella calidad 
6 descripcion. 

13°. — Si por acaso algun pasagero, viajando para afuera 
6 en retorno a Europa, originalmente incripto en el Libro 
de Asientos 6 Entradas para ocupar un camarote de proa, 
se mudare a uno de los de popa, se le cargara por el viaje 
integro el precio correspondiente al camarote de popa. 

14°.— Mas si algun pasagero de retorno a Europa, origi- 
nalmente inscripto en el Libro de entradas para ocupar un 
camarote de popa, en el trasbordamiento no pudiere ser 
colocado en uno de los camarotes de popa, por el viaje 



ARTICULOS REGLAMENTARIOS. XXxiii 



entero, solamente se le cargara el precio como a un pasagero 
de camarote de proa. 

15°. — En el caso enque un pasagero que va afuera, origin 
nalmente inscripto en el Libro de Entradas para ocupar 
un camarote de popa, en el trasbordamiento subsiguiente on 
pudiere ser acomodado en camarote de popa (como esto solo 
puede acaecer cuando el viaje esta ya casi finalizado) se le 
concedera la deduccion de cinco chelines diarios por cada 
uno de los dias en que se halle compulso a. ocupar tal 
camarote de proa. 

16°. — Los pasageros intercoloniales no han de ser in- 
scriptos en el Libro de entradas para mayor distancia de 
aquella a la cual pueden ser conducidos por el Vajel en 
que se embarcan, 6 por otros Vajeles con los cuales se 
espera que habran de encontrarse, y a los cuales puedan 
ser trasbordados. 

17°. — Antes que se inscriban en el Libro de Asientos ode 
Entradas los pasageros intercoloniales se acudira a, la lista 
de rutas a las cuales el Vajel esta destinado, como tambien 
a la lista de la linea de puntos en que toca el barco, con el 
objeto de evitar equivocaciones, por cuanto los precios de 
pasage estan arreglados del modo que ajusten con la direc- 
cion que lleva el Vaj61 ; y cuando acontece que un pasagero 
puede ser conducido al sitio de su destino por mas de una 
via, la mas cercana es la pauta por la cual se calcula el 
precio, y solo por la cual (no por la mas lejana) puede 
ser conducido por la cantidad especificada. 

18°. — El acomodarse en los camarotes posteriores, ode- 
popa, en los barcos de Vapor que retornan a. Inglaterra de 
Santo Tomas, por la via de Fayal, es conveniencia que debe 
dividirse igualmente entre los pasageros procedentes de 
Jamaica y los de la ruta de barlovento, esto es los poste- 
riores camarotes del Estribor, ocostado derecho del barco, 
pueden tomarse en Jamaica, y los camarotes posteriores 
del Babor, 6costado izquierdo, se han de reservar para los 
pasageros de Demerara y de las Islas de Barlovento ; pero 
si al arrivo a Santo Tomas se hallare que los pasageros de 
una de las expresadas direcciones no han menester todos 
los camarotes que les fueron provistos, y que de la otra 
direccion hay mas individuos de los que pudieron anterior- 

c 



XXxiv ARTICULOS REGLAMENTARIOS. 



mente optar a ocupar camarotes de popa, entonces se daran 
a estos tales pasageros los camarotes de popa que hubiere 
desocupados con la precedencia de eieccion en conformidad 
a las fechas de su insercion en el libro de entradas. 

19°. — Todos los pasageros que de las Indias ocidentales 
pasan a Inglaterra, via de las Bermudas, habran de estar a 
la suerte de obtener camarotes de popa cuando alcancen el 
Barco de Vapor Mejicano. 

20°. — Cuando a bordo van criadas, no han de ocupar 6 
retener los mejores camarotes al paso que hay pasageros 
decentes peor acomodados que ellas. 

21°. — El pesoduro Espanol se recibira en todas las pose- 
siones territoriales Britanicas a razon de cuatro chelines 
y dos peniques, moneda esterlina ; el doblon de a ocho, u 
onza de oro, a, razon de 64 chelines. En todos los sitios ex- 
trangeros en doncle el valor esterlin del pesoduro es menor 
de cuatro chelines y dos peniques, como en Mejico, se 
recibira por el valor que alii tuviere, y la diferencia que 
resultare en favor de la compania se contara como lucro por 
el cambio. 

22°. — En los Puertos Extrangeros las pecuniarias canti- 
dades especificadas en la Tabla, 6 lista de precios, inter- 
colonials e han de pagar en duros de plata, 6 su equivalente 
en otra moneda corriente ; esta regla se aplica tambien a 
las Colonias Britanicas, exceptuando que las notas (6 papel 
moneda) del Banco Colonial se han de recibir como equi- 
valentes, cuando fuere del agrado de todos los interesados. 
Las monedas de cinco francos se han de recibir a, razon de 
cuatro chelines cada una, cuando se ofrecen en pago de 
flete 6 de pasage a fuera. 

23°. — No se permite a los pasageros que embarquen vinos, 
espiritus ni otros licores para su consumo durante el viaje ; 
al effecto hay a bordo un amplio acopio de esas cosas, y a 
precios equitativos. 

24°. — Las personas que, en clase de pasageros pretenden 
embarcarse, comunicaran con los Agentes, pero la moneda 
por su transito han de pagarla a bordo. 

25 0 . — Dase preferencia en la eieccion de camarotes a las 
personas que hubieren acudido primero a los Agentes de 



ARTICULOS REGLAMENTARIOS. 



XXXV 



la compauia, en el orden en que se hallaren sus nombres 
en la lista que estos deben remitir al Capitan. Otros pasa- 
geros, no mencionados en la lista antedicha, haran la elee- 
cion de camarotes por el orden en que fueren entrando en 
el Vajel. 

26°. — En los sitios en donde los Vajeles de la Compania 
arriban y de donde salen, de noche, se disparara un canon 
para anunciar su llegada en el momento en que se kecha a 
el agua el bote del correo. 

27°. — Se ruega, como es debido y por su misma conve- 
niencia, a. los pasageros que se conformen con los regla- 
ruentos establecidos en cuanto rnira a pasaportes, 6cc, 
especialrnente en puertos extrangeros. 

28o. — De cada Vajel se despachara un bote para de- 
sembarcar y embarcar pasageros, moneda en especie, y 
paquetes. 



Reglas que han de Observarse a Bordo. 

29°. — Se concederan cuantas cosas sean adaptadas a la 
conveniencia de los pasageros en los actos y operaciones de 
su embarco y deserubarco ; y el capitan tratara con toda 
urbanidad ymirarniento a los pasageros a bordo de su vajel, 
inculcando eficazmente a. los individuos que bajo de su 
rnando llevare, la importancia de sus obligacioaes. 

30°.— El Capitan jamas podra incurrir en el extremo de 
oficioso por sus frecuentes investigaciones sobre si todos y 
cada uno de los pasageros en su Vajel han recibido la aten- 
cion y asistencia necesarias a su comodidad, tal cual las 
circunstancias permitan ; y si hubiere causa rational de 
queja, inmediatamente procurara remediarla. 

31°. — Los oficiales de centinelacon civilidad contextaran 
a cualquiera pregunta que les hicieren los pasageros; pero 
evitaran el entrarse en conversacion prolongadacon ninguna 
persona, no sea que su atencion se aparte de sus proprias 
obligaciones. 

32°. — El Capitan va encargado de que, al empezar el 
viaje, intime a los pasegeros que, si les place, libremente 
pueden nombrar entre si tres personas de juicio sano en 



XXXvi ARTICULOS REGLAMENTARIOS. 



calidad de comisionados para las diarias inspeccion y apro- 
bacion de la lista de alimentos. 

33 0 . — Las horas de repasto son : para el desayuno desde 
las ocho hasta las nueve de la manana. El bocadillo desde 
las doce hasta la una de la tarde, La Comida desde las 
cuatro hasta las cinco. T€ y Cafe de siete a ocho de la 
tarde. Un cuarto de hora antes de los dichos repastos se 
tocara la campana para que los que han de concurrir se 
preparen. 

34.o — Los Vinos que se presentan son el Oporto, Jerez, 
Madera, Hock, Champana, Clarete, y Mosele, a los que se 
han asignado precios equitativos, y cuya lista ha de estar 
siempre de manifiesto en el salon. 

35o. — Se espera que todos los pasageros, en sana salud, 
acudiran a la mesa publica, y decentemente vestidos paia 
sus comidas y repastos. 

36 0 . — A las once de la noche se apagaran todas las luces ; 
y despues de esa hora a nadie se surtira de vinos, espiritus, 
&c, ni se llamara a los sirvientes, a no ser encaso de 
indisposicion en la salud. En los dormitorios no se per- 
mitiran luces exceptuando las que se reservan en las cla- 
vadas linternas. 

37 0 . — Cada ocho dias se mudaran las sabanas y almohadas 
de las camas en viajes dilatados, y diariamente se dara a 
cada pasagero una toalla limpia. 

38°. — De la parte de afuera de los camarotes no se con- 
sentira que dejen vestidos, ni chinelas. 

39 Q , — Ni en los Salones, ni en los camarotes, ni en el 
Alcazar se permitira, fumar. En la Cubierta alta, delante 
del cano de la chimenea hay espacio suficiente para tal 
intento destinado. 

40o. — Durante el Domingo, en todas las partes del barco 
estan prohibidos todos los juegos de suerte. 

41 0 . — Todos los Despenseros y sirvientes, sea la que fuere 
su clase, han de presentarse limpios y decentemente aseados 
so pena de ser despedidos. 

42°. — En los Domingos, permitiendolo el temporal, el 
Capitan leera el servicio divino. 



PRICES OF WINES. 



xxxvii 



43°. — No se permitira bagage pesado en los cainarotes. 
Se ruega a los pasageros que, para su uso durante el viaje, 
elijan cofres, maletas 6 cajas de tamano moderado y faciles 
de mover. El bagage pesado se pondra en el aposento 
propio para el efecto, al cual pueden acudir, en boras opor- 
tunas, cuando hubieren menester. 

44°. — En el caso de quebrantamiento de estas neglas 6 en 
los de negligencia, desatencion, 6 falta de decencia, 6 de 
cualquier otro motivo de descontento, se ruega a los pasa- 
geros que den de ello sin dilacion noticia al comandante, 
plenamente autorizado para obrar como convenga en tales 
circumstancias. 

Por Orden de la Junta de Directores, 

E. CHAPPELL, Sec 0 

55, Moorgate Street, London, 
Julio, dia 1°. de 1845. 



Scutes, g$ixit$, Malt Htpors, $tt. 



PRICES OF 



On board the Ships. 



Claret 



Port. , 
Sherr 



Champagne 



Madeira 




Glass of Port, Sherry, or Madeira, 4d. 



( xxxviii ) 



CARGO. 

A limited quantity of GOODS can now be forwarded through 
the Agencs of the Company, 

From ENGLAND to 

BARBADOES, TRINIDAD, ST. THOMAS, 

DEMERARA, JAMAICA, BERMUDA. 

GRENADA, 

To ENGLAND from 

JAMAICA, BERMUDA, HAVANA, 

ST. JAGO de CUBA TAMPICO, NASSAU, 
ST. THOMAS, VERA CRUZ, FAYAL. 

And INTERCOLONIALLY between 

BARBADOES, TRINIDAD, BERMUDA, 

DEMERARA, ST. THOMAS, NASSAU. 

GRENADA, JAMAICA, 

And to these Places, from HAVANA, ST. JAGO de CUBA, 
and other Foreign Ports ; but Cargo cannot be carried to Foreign 
Ports, ST. THOMAS excepted, but by special permission. 



Boxes, Packages, and Parcels will be taken for all the 
British West India Colonies and for St. Thomas. 

They should be delivered at the London Office on or before noon of the 
14th and 28th of each Month ; after which they must be sent down to 
Mr. George Dunlop, Southampton, who will put them on board at Ship- 
pers' expense 

Periodical Publications, with the covers open at both ends, and 
Patterns or Samples, will be taken for all parts ; and they can be 
booked in the London Office until 2 o'clock on the day previous to the 
sailing of the Packet. 



( xxxix ) 



The following Charges include Carriage from the London Office to Southampton, 
Entry, Shipping, Freight, and Landing in the West Indies, but not Insurance. 



One Cubic Foot, and under . . . 7s. 6d. per Package. 

Above One to Three Cubic Feet inclusive 15s. , , 

Above Three Cubic Feet 5s. per Foot. 

Quarterly Publications and Pamphlets . 2s. each. 

Monthly Publications Is. ,, 



Intercolonial Scale for Parcels and Packages One-fifth less than the 
Transatlantic Scale. 

RATES OF FREIGHT. 

OUTWARD FREIGHT, to be Prepaid, 
For Measurement Goods, £b per Ton, or 2s. 6d. per Cubic 
Foot, with 5 per Cent, primage. Provisions and Heavy 
Goods, £± per Ton weight, and 5 per Cent, primage : to 
be charged by weight or measurement at option of the 
Company. Machinery as per agreement. Cinnamon, 
Id. per lb. 

Quicksilver, 2 per Cent, on value. 

All Goods to be put on board at Southampton, at Shippers' 
expense. Shipping Notes must be obtained of Mr. George 
Dunlop, the Company's Shipping Agent, at Southampton. 

No Bills of Lading given for less Freight than One Guinea. 

HORSES, CATTLE, and SHEEP 
Can be Shipped at the following rates : — 

Horse or Ox to the West Indies . . . £30 each. 

,, Mexico or S. American Ports 40 ,, 

Sheep to West Indies 5 ,, 

,, Bermuda, Nassau, Mexican, or 

South American Ports ... 6 ,, 

Madeira , 4 ,, 

The Company provides Stalls, Fodder, Water, &c. but is not responsible 
for any accidental injury or loss. 

Shipping and Landing Charges to be defrayed by Shippers. 



xl 



RATES OF FREIGHT. 



HOMEWARD FREIGHT, payable in England. 

per Cent. 

SPECIE. — Any distance exceeding 2,500 miles, and ) j A 
deliverable at the Bank of England S 8 

Platina, ditto ditto ... on value 1J 

Pearls, Emeralds, and all other Precious Stones, "1 
unset, being exempt from duty, deliverable at > If 
the Bank of England on value j 

Jewellery, subject to duty, deliverable at South- 
ampton on value 

Coffee, Pimento, Cocoa and Ginger . . £b per ton weight, 

Sarsaparilla and other Drugs .... l^d. per lb. 

Cochineal, Indigo, Gums, and } , , 

Bees' Wax T per Ab * 

Pines, Oranges, or other Green ~) « K , , 

-c l j • tt f £o per ton measurement 

Fruits packed m Hampers, ' 4 0 Cubic Feet. 

Barrels, or Boxes .... J 

Cigars and Leaf Tobacco . . . £b per ditto ditto. 

Measurement Goods 3s. 6d. per cubic foot. 

Turtle, on the quantity landed alive *\ 

at Southampton ; but the Com- I ^ ^ ^ g er cw ^. 

pany not liable for losses by death { S * P er CW * 

or disaster j 

Five per Cent. Primage to be paid on all Homeward Freight, except 
for Specie, Jewellery, Platina, and Precious Stones. 

Small parcels of Succades, Arrow Root, &c. charged at the present 
rate for Parcels and Packages. 

No package of Specie, Platina, Pearls, Precious Stones, or Jewellery, 
to be conveyed at a less charge than Five Dollars. 



INTERCOLONIAL FREIGHT (Goods), payable at the Port of 
Delivery. 

£2 10s. per Ton weight, or 5s. per barrel for Heavy Goods, and 
£3 10s. per Ton for Measurement Goods. 



RATES OF FREIGHT. 



xli 



Specie. — Exceeding 2,500 miles, 1 per Cent. 

Exceeding 1,000 miles, and not above 2,500 miles, 
f per Cent. 

Not exceeding 1,000 miles, -J per Cent. 

Jewellery — Not exceeding 1,500 miles, 1^ per cent. ; over 
1,500 miles, 2 per cent. 

No sums under 5,000 dollars are to be conveyed, however short the dis- 
tance, at a lower rate than ^ per Cent. ; but when large amounts are to 
be remitted to places within 800 miles, the rate will be J per Cent, and 
no Package is to be taken at a less freight than 5 dollars. The tables of 
routes to determine the distance. The lowest rate of Freight for Specie 
conveyed to Jamaica from the Spanish Main, is to be £ per Cent. 

Specie, Packages, and Parcels, as heretofore, to be prepaid at the 
Port of Shipment. 

Preference always to be given to Transatlantic over Intercolonial Cargo. 

Sugar, Molasses, Cotton, and Spirits not to be shipped. 

Goods and Packages arriving from places abroad will be lodged in the 
Custom House, Southampton ; and in the West Indies with the Com- 
pany's Agents, whence they will have to be retired by the parties to whom 
they may be addressed ; or at Southampton the Company's Shipping Agent, 
Mr. G. Dinlop, will clear and forward them, if commissioned to do so by 
the Consignees, at their expense. 



By order of the Court of Directors, 

EDWARD CHAPPELL, Secretary. 



POSTAL TABLE. 



PLACES. 


Mails 
of the 
2nd. 


Mails 
of the 
17th. 


Postage, 
under 
J ounce. 


Time 
out. 
days. 


Time for 
Replies, 
days. 


Time 
home, 
days. 


Course 
of Post, 
days. 


\ n ti irii si 






s. 
1 


U 


25^ 


15 


24^ 


65 


Tsei the) nnpc 








0 


21 


15 


29 


65a 


Rpvmn H 51 






1 


n 
u 


32 


30 


18 


805 


Carthagena 






* o 
1 c 


o 
D 


32J 




38 


80 


t risi OTPS 




-. 


* 1 

' 1 


U 


34 


5 


41 


80 


T~lAm A 1*51 1*51 






1 


I' 


26-1 


' 4 


31 1. 


65 








1 

1 




^4 


15 


25i 


65 








1 


u 


23 


15 


27 


50 


Guadaloup 6 






' 1 


c 
0 


25 


15 


25 


65 


Havana . 






jfen 


o 
o 


351 


4 


25£ 


65c 


TT nil H n v si c 






1 


n 
u 


4fU 


2 


46^ 


95 


I q r*ivi pi 






1 1 


c 
0 


27^ 


12 


25^ 


65 


l51TV151ir > 51 






i 


Q 


28J 


8 


28^ 


6bd 


T ,51 1-Trll 5lTTi*51 


, 




1 


a 
U 


27 


6 


32 


65 


1VT 5i t*ti n i m i p» 


1 


-, 


1 


K 
□ 


25 


15 


25 


65 


TVFarl All* 51 


-. 




1 


1 ft 

J.U 


7 










1 




I 


u 


25f 


15 


241 


65 


\l51CC5m 






1 


U 






22£ 


65 e 








1 


a 

u 


26 


15 


24 


65 


Pnrtn Clahplln 






I 


A 

u 


28 


2 


35 


65 


PAvtA Tii on 






1 


o 


30 


13 


22 


65 


St Tsicrri rip OnTifl 

uli iidgu iac vuua. • • • 

St. Kitt's 




1 


* 9 


a 


31 


2 


32 


65 






1 
1 


u 


26 


15 


24 


65 


St. Lucia 






i 

1 


A 


24 


15 


26 


65 


St Thomas ...... 






1 I 


5 


27 


15 


23 




St Vinr-pnt 




-. 


1 


0 


^04 


15 


26J 


UJ 


Sn-ntsi A/Tnrthfi 




, 


*2 


3 


Ol 2 


1 li 
ii 4 


0/4 


8ft 









*2 


3 


36 


1 


43 


80 








*2 


3 


47 


5 


43 


95 








1 


0 


23f 


12 


29£ 


65 


Tortola 






I 


0 


27 


15 


23 


65 








1 


0 


25i 


9 


30i 


65 


Vera Cruz 






*2 


3 


42f 


171 


34f 


95 



* Postage must be prepaid, 
a Bridgetown can correspond 15 days earlier. 
& St. George's can correspond 30 days earlier. 

c 2nd only for Mails. Passengers can go via St. Thomas and Bermuda 
40| days from England. 

d Town of Kingston, Is. postage. 

e 2nd via Havana with Mails. Passengers can also go on 17th, via 
Bermuda. 

/ St. Thomas (town) can correspond 15 days earlier. 



( xliii ) 



RAILWAY TRAINS, STEAMERS, &c. 

Railway trains from London for Southampton, start at 
7, 9, 11, 12, a.m., and 1, 3, 5, and 8J, p.m., and arrive 
at Southampton from London, at 20 minutes past 10, 12 J, 
5, 2, a.m.; and 4^, 6, 8^, 57 minutes past 1 1 , p.m. 

Railway trains start from Southampton for London, at 

2, 7, 9, 11, a.m., and 1, 3, and 6, p.m.; Sundays at 2, 
10, 5. 

Fares — first class, 20s. ; second class, 14s. At 11, a.m. 
and 3, p.m. 21s. ; — no second class train at these hours. 

There are repeated communications between Southampton 
and the Isle of Wight during the day, and also with Ports- 
mouth, by steam boats. 

With Havre three times a week, calling at Portsmouth 
one hour and a quarter after leaving Southampton, and 
performing the passage from thence in ten hours. 

Fares — Main Cabin, 21s. ; Fore Cabin, 14s.; Carriages, 
£3 ; Horses, £3 ; Dogs, 5s. 

First class steamers, from Havre to Rouen, daily in six 
hours. Railway from Rouen to Paris at 6, 8^, 11, 1, 3, 
and 6 o'clock. Ditto from Paris to Rouen at 7, 9, 11, 1, 

3, and 5 o'clock. 

Fares— first class, 13s. ; second class, 10s. 6d. ; third 
class, 8s. 

For Guernsey and Jersey, every Tuesday, Thursday, 
and Friday evening at 7 o'clock, returning from the islands 
every Monday, Thursday, and Saturday. 

Fares — Main Cabin, 25s. ; Second Cabin, 18s. ; Car- 
riages, £3 ; Horses, £3 ; Dogs, 5s. 

St. Malo and Granville from Jersey — Main Cabin, 10s. ; 
Fore Cabin, 7s. 

The steamer will leave Jersey for St. Malo every Wed- 
nesday, after the arrival of the steamer from Southampton, 
returning on the following day; also to Granville every 
Friday, returning every Saturday. Fares from Guernsey 
to Jersey — Main Cabin, 4s. ; Fore Cabin. ; 2s. 6d. 

Steam vessels maintain a direct communication between 
Southampton, Falmouth, Plymouth and Dublin, without 
calling at any intermediate ports, and sail from South- 
ampton, every Thursday, at 3 o'clock in the afternoon ; to 



xliv RAILWAY TRAINS, STEAMERS, ETC. 



Southampton from Dublin every Wednesday ; Ditto from 
Falmouth, every Friday, 8 o'clock morning; Ditto from 
Plymouth, every Friday, 4 o'clock afternoon. 

Fares — Southampton to Plymouth, 25s. ; to Falmouth, 
35s.; to Dublin, 37s. 6d. ; in best Cabin, including stew- 
ard's fees. 

Conveyances and Fares to and from the Terminus to all parts 
of Southampton. 

Flys, (one horse,) luggage included, to the Pier, and all 
below the Bar, Is. To any part above Bar, or within the 
boundaries of the town, Is. 6d. To Highfield and Ports- 
wood, 2s. 6d. Two-horse Flys, sixpence extra. 

Barrowmen and Porters, to the Pier, and all below the 
Market, Is. To above the Market and within the Bar, 
Is. 6d. To above the Bar and within the Turnpike, 2s. 
Double Barrows or Trucks, sixpence extra. 

Omnibuses, to any Hotel, and all parts of the town, 
6d. each person ; except to and from the Mail Trains, 
Is. each. 

COACHES. 

To Portsmouth, daily, at Twelve o'clock, Two o'clock, 
and half-past Five. 

To Poole, at half-past Five, and Twelve at night. 

To Lymington, at Six in the morning, and half-past 
Five in the evening. 

To Weymouth (Magnet ) at half-past Eleven. 

To Exeter, at half-past Eleven, and Nine in the evening. 

To Bath and Bristol (Mail ) at half-past Nine at night, 
through Romsey, Salisbury, Warminster, and Frome. 

To Brighton (Mail ) every morning at Ten. 

To Oxford, mornings at Ten, through Newbury. 



Note. — We have seen an invention, at Messrs. Maynard and Harris's, 
27, Poultry, admirably contrived for Travelling, a light Iron Bedstead is 
ingeniously introduced into the back of one of a pair of Trunks, occupying 
only two inches of space and we are told that it adds no more than 
lOlbs. to the weight. — See their Advertisiment. 



THE 



WEST ODIA GUIDE, 

AC Ac. 



Parties intending to proceed by the Royal Mail 
Steamers, are recommended to apply, either by 
letter, addressed to Captain Chappell, Secretary, or 
personally, at the office of the Company, 55, Moor- 
gate Street, London, a month, or at least a fortnight 
previously. This early application is recommended, 
as a choice of berths can then be made, which will 
materially conduce to the comfort of the passenger 
during the voyage. The berths in these steamers 
are fitted up with every attention to comfort. Each 
after-cabin passenger has a separate cabin, which 
contains, besides the bed, a chest of drawers, wash- 
hand stand, &c, and is large enough also to con- 
tain any personal luggage the passenger may require 
during the voyage. There are also cabins in the 
fore part of the ship with two beds in each, which 
can be had at lower terms; they are, however, fitted 
up in exactly the same style as the other cabins, and 
the occupation of one of these does not in the least 
affect the respect paid to the passenger, or his posi- 
tion at the general table in the saloon. All heavy 
luggage is stowed below deck; but access can be 
had to it at seasonable times, on application to the 
Captain or Ship's Clerk. 

B 



2 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The berth is not considered engaged until the 
whole fare is paid. The ticket then issued specifies 
the number of the berth, and secures it to the pas- 
senger during the voyage. Heavy baggage should 
be at Southampton two clear days before the sailing 
of the ships; and in that case should leave London 
on the 14th and 29th of each month, addressed to 
the care of Mr. G. Dunlop, No. 2, Winkle Street, 
Southampton, the Company's Agent. For this pur- 
pose passengers will be saved much trouble on either 
leaving their baggage with Messrs. Chaplin and 
Home, Hambro' Wharf, London, or advising those 
gentlemen where to send their waggons for it. By 
them it will be conveyed to Southampton, and de- 
livered at the Docks to Mr. Dunlop for shipment; 
and in this manner it will be put on board at less 
expense to passengers than in any other way. All 
packages intended for use on the voyage should be 
distinctly marked so, and in advising Mr. Dunlop 
of their dispatch, the numbers of the berths engaged 
should be stated, in which case due care will be taken 
that the packages are placed in the proper berths. 

Passengers may leave London by the train from 
Vauxhall at five p.m. of the day previous to the 
sailing of the ship; and on arriving at the South- 
ampton station at half-past eight, p.m. they will 
find omnibuses and flys to convey them to any hotel 
in town. There is also a train at half-past eight, 
p.m., arriving at midnight; but passengers coming 
by this train should write the day previous to the 
hotels to secure beds. 

Passengers, their baggage having been previously 
forwarded, will be in time by the train that leaves 
Vauxhall at seven or nine a.m. on the day the ship 



DEPARTURE FROM ENGLAND. 



3 



sails; but, as any casualty to these trains might 
prevent them reaching in time for the Company's 
small steamer Victoria, — which conveys passengers 
and any small article of personal luggage, />ee, from 
the dock to the ship, at ten minutes to one o'clock 
on the day of sailing, — the previous evening trains 
are recommended. 

As the large steamers are moored about five miles 
below the town, to expedite the dispatch of the 
mails, passengers are strongly recommended to be 
in time for the Victoria; but if too late, they must 
hire a boat which will cost three shillings each per- 
son, at the least. 

Passengers arriving from France and proceeding 
by the West India steamers, were formerly per- 
mitted to tranship their baggage from one steamer 
to the other without examination; but in consequence 
of the large number of letters taken out in this way 
to the injury of the Post Office revenue, all foreign 
baggage must now undergo a partial examination by 
an officer, at the passenger's expense, and for this 
purpose application should be made to Mr. Dunlop 
immediately on the passenger arriving from the 
continent. 

There are several commodious hotels adjoining the 
quay and custom-house, such as the " Royal George," 
"Sun," and cf Castle," as well as the "Royal Hotel" 
(Matcham), the " Dolphin," the " Star," and "Rad- 
ley's New Hotel," near the railway terminus, where 
families residing at Southampton for any time will 
find superior accommodation. 

The large steamer having received her mails and 
passengers, about three p.m. proceeds direct to Ma- 
deira, and thence to Barbadoes, &c. 

b 2 



4 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



AT SEA, 

The ship has left the land " tight, staunch, and 
strong." Probably it is winter, and the westerly 
winds drive in from the wide Atlantic the long swell 
of deep-blue water; and the ship, as she breasts 
these heaving billows, groans and creaks through the 
whole of her mighty frame. Every one reels and 
totters, — there is no rest on deck, — to bed with the 
sick. Discomfort prevails; and many times do some 
lament they had ever come on board. Every sense 
is offended, and tempers are sorely tried. 

So it is another day and another night, and the 
Bay of Biscay has many a heavy heart on its " still- 
vexed" bosom. 

But will you not try to come on deck ? Although 
the sea is yet rough, the morning is fine and beau- 
tiful; you will see something well worth your atten- 
tion. Do come: struggle with your sickness: — half 
of it is because you yield to it. Turn your thoughts 
from your own discomfort by looking on something to 
interest you. Wrap up well — don't mind appearances. 

Now we are on deck; you are not the first to get 
out. See that Spanish lady with red handkerchief 
over her hair and shawl on her shoulders, how she 
claps her hands and shouts with joy at the " moun- 
tainous" waves. And are they not magnificent* — 
not like the waves in the channel, discoloured, and 
broken, and fretted by the many obstructions, — these 
are each a long, deep-blue line or ridge of massive 
water, coming on without break or partition in their 
irresistible force, swooping down as if to engulph us ; 



AT SEA. 



0 



but be not afraid. Pause one moment and you will 
see how art triumphs. Steady your feet, and let us 
watch this third wave, — it is the largest. Now it 
comes looking with its top curved as if it would 
surely swallow us in its briny gulph. How majestic 
and irresistible in its course is this high ridge of 
measureless water. But fear not, already you per- 
ceive we rise to meet it, and now it comes bearing 
the heavy ship high on its bosom, and, swelling up 
to near the nettings at our feet, gradually subsides 
and recedes at the other side, to rise again in its turn. 
And the ship glides on, faster than before, in the 
trough left by the receding wave. 

Now let us stand as far aft as we can, even to the 
taffrail, and looking forward to the very bowsprit, 
mark the long, beautiful line of the deck. There is 
no poop or quarter-deck to break the even lines or 
seams, that carry your eye to the very bows. Xote 
how gracefully the noble ship dallies and bends to 
the surge — like a coy bride, fearing, though anxious 
for her lover's approach. She bends and sways with 
easy, graceful motion, and nobly rides over all with- 
out allowing a drop of green water to suffuse her 
deck. How beautiful a machine is this magnificent 
ship, and how like a god is man who can create such 
a machine, so complete, so perfectly applicable to 
his purposes ! 

Aye, for a time you had lost your sickness in your 
wonder; and is not a scene like this worth coming 
out to see ? Stay-at-home travellers may sit and 
ynagine other scenes, but no imagination can reach 
reality here. 

Another night, and we have reached the latitude 
of Lisbon. What a delicious change in the weather 



6 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



and in our feelings ! The weather, that had been 
squally with snow and sleet, is now genial and warm, 
and the sun shines out with gladness. It seems as 
though during the night we had passed into another 
hemisphere, so complete is the change. No fires are 
needed in the saloons now; cloaks are discarded, 
and crowds of passengers are on the deck whom we 
had not seen before. 

All are trying to walk the seams; and the Spanish 
lady as she attempts and fails, shouts with laughter, 
and her clear, brilliant voice rings out high over all. 
Now you can with more comfort admire the waves; 
you have already almost " got your sea-legs on," 
and can walk without danger of falling. And notice 
the sea-birds as they fly past, or accompany the ship, 
how graceful are their movements. 

What is it you ask? "When will dinner be 
ready ?" You have got your appetite then ? Ah, 
you now can know the delight of the senses, for 
they have lain dormant for days. 

The dinner ! Never did alderman know the true 
relish, the ravishment of eating, who has not been 
a voyage across " the Bay," and, after three days' 
sickness, sat down with reinvigorated appetite to a 
dinner fit for a lord mayor. This haunch of mutton, 
the steward says, has hung over the ship's rail fif- 
teen days; it is roasted to a turn — how delicious it 
eats. Every one is busy. 

After dinner comes the dessert, and the toasts of 
" the Captain," and " the Directors, and success to 
their undertaking," are received with acclamation. 
And yet another toast, which our happy-looking 
friend yonder has risen to propose. Ah, " the 
ladies!" how is it we had forgotten them? He 



AT SEA. 



/ 



notes the neglect and claims his privilege, as an 
Irishman, to be their proposer. 

Refreshed and invigorated after dinner, we are 
a^ain on deck, and the sea is becoming more and 
more smooth, the air more warm, and the moon, 
though young, is shedding a bright lustre on all 
around. See how high above us she is, almost to 
the zenith, — so high, that she scarce casts our sha- 
dows on the deck. Singing! Yes, that clear joyous 
voice of the Spanish lady again fills the ear. She 
sins-s some of Bellini's sweet and tender sonsrs. 
And now another and another: men's voices, these 
chime in. How delicious, in this clear fresh air, 
— with our senses not only returned, but returned 
with renewed enjoyment and keener relish, — is this 
evening song, the song of the happy heart and 
pensive feeling. 

What a beautiful world is this, if we could always 
enjoy it thus! 



( 8 ) 



MADEIRA. 

On leaving Southampton the steamers proceed direct * 
to Madeira, which is reached in six or seven days; 
the distance is about 1280 miles. 

The land when first seen — it may be the first sight 
of foreign land to many of the passengers — seems a 
huge black castle rising directly out of the sea, with 
its walls dilapidated, and its turrets and towers in 
demolition; but as the steamer gracefully rounds 
the eastern point of land, the scene is strikingly 
beautiful. 

" The eye paused/ 5 says a writer in the Monthly 
Repository of 1834, "fascinated, as it rose upwards 
from the town and took in the white dwellings, fairy 
temples, elfin cottages, and sprite cells, that sat 
upon the mountain side; so small, so elegant, so 
airy, did they all appear: the builders must have 
been workmen from the world of spirits; they were 
the houses of Lilliput. It was the hugeness of the 
mountain which, to my unaccustomed sense, gave 
to the buildings those diminutive and fairy-like pro- 
portions; and the trees, too, belonged to Oberon's 
own forest; and the shrubs were of Titania's garden. 
There, upon a turning ridge in the hill, one stood 
out against the light, and yet preserved its Lillipu- 
tianism; another, nestled in a hollow, was the snug 
retreat of some six-inch sage, shut out from the 
world. And everywhere the green, gliding off into 
brown and deeper shades or brighter hues, told 
spring, summer, and autumn had their home there^ 
together and for ever. Craving still, and feeding 



MADEIRA. 



9 



still unsated, the gaze was called to a hundred points 
of beauty and fascination in a moment, and re- 
velled bewilderingly on all; till, taking in the whole 
of the grandeur, and magnificence, and fairiness, of 
the uptowering and outlaid bulk of the mountain, 
the soul said — c This is sublime.' 

" Nor was the town of Funchal without its novelty. 
Houses all so un-English; all white, steeples and 
turrets shooting up above the flat roofs, and all si- 
lently smiling under the sun's light; the boats with 
their high pointing sterns and gaudily coloured bows, 
a big eye looking out of each, or a bunch of flowers 
on each side washed by the spray, as they lay wob- 
bling near the surfy beach; the men standi)!^ to row, 
with their faces to the boat's stern. And that genial 
richness of the climate, the temperature, was alone 
sufficient to satisfy and repay every excited fancy or 
previous discomfort. Midsummer voluptuousness was 
in the air; and a few days before I had been shi- 
vering in the snow and sleet. Here all was glow and 
free elasticity: no buttoning up, no muffling of the 
body to exclude the cold blast and the snow, but 
jacket discarded, and neck bared to taste fully the 
fanning breeze through the sun's heat. c People ought 
to be happy here/ I thought." 

" I should think," remarks another writer, author 
of " Six Months in the West Indies," and of whom 
we shall have to borrow as we proceed, " I should 
think the situation of Madeira the most enviable in 
the whole earth. It ensures almost every European 
comfort, together with almost every tropical luxury. 
Any degree of temperature may be enjoyed between 
I Funchal and the Ice House. The seasons are the 
youth, maturity, and old age of a never-ending still- 



10 THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 

beginning spring. Here I found what I use to sup- 
pose peculiar to the Garden of Eden: — 

Blossoms and fruits at once of golden hue 
Appeared, with gay enamelled colours mix'd. 

The myrtle, the geranium, the rose, and the violet> 
grow on the right hand and on the left, in the boon 
prodigality of primitive nature. The geranium, in 
particular, is so common, that the honey of the bees 
becomes like a jelly of that flower." 

The steamer proceeds to Funchal, the capital, 
seated on the south of the island. The shores are 
so rocky and precipitous, that the steamers do not 
anchor, but go close in, to land and receive passen- 
gers and mails, and to coal if requisite. 

Passengers are landed by shore-boats, which are 
both safe and commodious, and are managed with 
great expertness by the boatmen. There is no regu- 
lated charge for landing, but agreements should be 
made with the boatmen by the passengers : the price 
being from one shilling to three or four dollars each 
passenger, according to the distance and weather. 

The Portuguese government has lately permitted 
passengers to land their baggage duty free, a bond or 
engagement being given by the importer to re-ship it 
after one or two years, or then pay the island duty. 
This must be a very great convenience, as many 
articles of luxury or comfort have heretofore been 
charged with heavy customs' duties. 

English gold and silver are current here, as are 
also Spanish dollars and their parts. There are no 
banks; passengers, therefore, should supply them- 
selves with Spanish dollars, English gold, or letters 
of credit on merchants in the island, of whom seve- 
ral are English. 



MADEIRA. 



il 



There is one good hotel and several respectable 
boarding-houses; furnished houses may also be had 
at a rent varying according to size and conveniences, 
from three hundred to one thousand dollars (£(30 to 
£100), for six months. The charge in the boarding- 
houses is from forty to fifty dollars per month. 
There is good water in the island, and an abundance 
of fish and vegetables. Families going to Madeira, 
with the intention of taking a furnished house, are 
recommended to take their own house linen and 
plate, and, if for an invalid, an arm chair. 

The island does not admit of any wheel carriages 
being used. The modes of conveyance are on horse- 
back or in palankeens and hammocks; the price of 
hire for the latter, with two men, is about half a 
dollar per hour. Good saddle-horses are to be had 
on hire, at very moderate charges, by the hour, day, 
or month. 

The prevailing religion is the Roman Catholic; 
but there is an Episcopal chapel and a Presbyterian 
place of worship. There are some Portuguese 
schools supported by Government. 

A club, called the Funchalense, with reading, 
card, and billiard-rooms, is much frequented. Ad- 
mission is obtained through the introduction of mem- 
bers. Balls are given by the club six times in the 
year. 

Madeira is not considered a colony of Portugal, 
but a province of that kingdom, and sends two de- 
puties to the Cortes at Lisbon. 

It is now necessary for parties to take a passport 
on visiting the island, which is to be obtained of 
Mr. Vanzeller, Portuguese Consul General, 15, St. 
Mary Axe, at the cost of five shillings each; or at 



12 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE, 



Southampton, of Mr. Priaulx, at the cost of ten 
shillings each. Parties must be introduced. They 
must provide themselves also with a passport on 
leaving Madeira, which is obtained of the British 
Consul, George Stoddart, Esq., at the expense of 
four dollars, sixty cents (£1 sterling), for either an 
individual or family, and without personal attendance. 

Besides the West India steamers, there are also 
sailing vessels that are fitted for passengers to and 
from London and Madeira. The charge by these is 
about the same as by the steamers. The West India 
steamers do not call at Madeira coming home, but 
last year the Royal Tar steamer was sent out about 
the beginning of June, to bring home such as desired 
to return to England. She made two trips from 
Madeira to Gibraltar, delivering her passengers to 
the Peninsular steamers there, and one trip direct 
home. 

There are several English physicians, residents in 
the island; of these Doctors Benton, Boss, Brough- 
ton and M'Kellar are the most eminent. 

Sir James Clark, Bart., in his valuable work f c On 
the Sanative Influence of Climate," has written fully 
on the beneficial effects of the climate of Madeira, 
particularly on those who are liable to pulmonary con- 
sumption. He writes: — "Madeira has been long 
held in high estimation for the mildness and equa- 
bility of its climate, and we shall find on comparing 
this with the climate of the most favoured situations 
on the continent of Europe, that the character is well 
founded. 

"The mean annual temperature of Funchal is 64°, 
being about 5° only above that of the Italian and 
Provencal climates. This very moderate mean tern- 



MADEIRA. 



13 



perature arises from the summer at Madeira being 
proportionally cool. For, while the winter is 20° 
warmer than at London, the summer is only 7° 
warmer; and while the winter is 12° warmer than in 
Italy and Provence, the summer is nearly 5° cooler. 
The mean annual range of temperature is only 14°, 
being less than half the range of Rome, Pisa, Naples, 
and Nice." 

Nearly the same quantity of rain falls annually at 
Madeira as at Rome and Florence, but at Madeira 
there are only 73 days on which any rain falls, while 
at Rome there are 117. The rain at Madeira falls 
at particular seasons, chiefly in the autumn, leaving 
the atmosphere in general dry and clear during the 
remainder of the year. 

From this comparative view of the climate of Ma- 
deira, it must be readily perceived, how great the 
advantages are which this island presents to certain 
invalids over the best climates on the continent of 
Europe. It is warmer during the winter and cooler 
during the summer; there is less difference between 
the temperature of the day and night, between one 
season and another, and between successive days; it 
is almost exempt from keen, cold winds, and enjoys 
a general steadiness of weather to which the best of 
these places are strangers. 

Sir J. Clark is also of opinion that a sea-voyage 
is generally beneficial in the early stage of consump- 
tion. The sickness and vomiting are highly useful 
in many cases, and the increasing motion of a ship, 
by the constant exercise it produces, is also very 
advantageous. He quotes Dr. Heineken, who him- 
self resided at Madeira in consequence of a pulmonary 
complaint, on the great benefit that the pulmonary 



14 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE, 



invalid would receive by a residence during the whole 
year in Madeira. Dr. Heineken found that he rather 
retrograded during winter, but always gained ground 
during the summer. " Could I enjoy for a few 
years," he observes, "a perpetual Madeira summer, 
I should confidently anticipate the most beneficial 
results." He also recommends such patients, of 
which he was one, to pass the winter in the West 
Indies and the summer at Madeira. This can now 
be done with comfort and regularity by means of the 
West India steamers that call every fortnight, all the 
year through, at Madeira, on their way to the West 
Indies, Mexico, &c. 

The vine w r as first introduced from Crete in 1421. 
The Y/ines of Madeira have been in more repute in 
England than they now are. Sherry wine has, in a 
great measure, superseded them. This arose from 
the adulteration practised in the preparation of Ma- 
deira wines. It is difficult, however, to imagine that 
adulteration was ever practised to a greater extent 
upon Madeira, than it is now practised on Sherry. 
It is not, therefore, improbable that a reaction may 
take place in favour of Madeira. 

The quantity entered for home consumption in 
Great Britain in 1827, amounted to 308,295 gallons, 
whereas the quantity entered for home consumption 
in 1833, onl} r amounted to 161,042 gallons; and 
the duty paid in 1843 was only on 69,906 gallons, 
and in 1842 on 51,513 gallons, showing, however, 
an encrease in 1843 over 1842 of 17,393 gallons. 

Each vineyard is divided by a walk about two yards 
wide, bounded by low stone walls. Along these 
walks, arched over with laths about seven feet high, 
they erect wooden pillars at equal distances to support 



MADEIRA. 



15 



a lattice-work of bamboos, which slopes down from 
both sides of the walk till it is only two feet high. 
The vines are in this manner supported from the 
ground, and the workmen have room to root out the 
weeds between them. In the season of the vintage, 
they crawl under the lattice-work, gather the grapes 
and lay them in baskets. It is this mode of keeping 
and drying the grapes in the shade, that gives the 
Madeira wines that fulness and richness of flavour 
which they possess. 

Malmsey, a very luscious species of the Madeira, 
is made from grapes grown on rocky grounds, ex- 
posed to the full influence of the sun's rays, and 
allowed to remain on the vine till they are over-ripe. 



( 16 ) 



THE ATLANTIC. 

At Madeira a few hours suffice to exchange the mails 
and passengers, and the noble ship is again cleaving 
her way to the New World. 

To those passengers who for the first time have 
attempted a long sea voyage, the strangeness of the 
sailor's life has now become pleasurable. The air is 
balmy, the pulse quickens, the spirits are alive to all 
things with a keener relish. Meals, that before were 
turned from with loathing, are sought with anti- 
cipated pleasure; every sense is joy. Each passen- 
ger finds his fellow-passenger more agreeable as the 
cold conventionalisms of the world fall off. 

And then what fresh interest in all around! — the 
deep, the air, the sky. 

Those denizens of the water, how beautifully free 
and exquisitely graceful are their glad movements, 
as they play across the bows of the ship! What a 
suitable " habitation" have they — 

Marvellously plann'd 

For life to occupy in love and rest. 

How fresh the morning breeze; how gorgeous the 
setting sun, and serene the coming on of evening 
mild, when stars — more bright than those that shine 
in our cloudy sky — send down their piercing rays. 

Onward ploughs the giant ship. What to her are 
the winds ! She heeds them not. The waves ! they are 
but her highway. Onward she goes, — untiring, un- 
resting, with steady purpose. 



THE ATLANTIC. 



17 



What to us, in this noble ship, were the fears, 
the superstitions, the terrors, of those who accom- 
panied that max who first sought, through these 
waters, the Xew World. Who, with firm faith, on 
that eventful third of August, 1492, pushed off his 
three small ships — one only of which was completely 
decked — to seek that Xew World which had for years 
existed in his thought, and flourished in his imagi- 
nation. 

We are not to be terrified by fancied shrieks in the 
wind, or of hostile hosts imaged in the clouds. The 
change in the direction of the compass does not fill 
us with dread, nor do we suppose that the masses 
of sea-weed that may compass us around, are sent 
by spirits of evil to bar our approach. 

To us these things are as idle dreams. But they 
were strong and fearful realities to those lone men in 
their little ships who first entered these seas. They 
were realities to all but him whose firmness, decision, 
and indomitable will led them on, in firm trust in 
that God whose religion he sought to establish in a 
world unknown. 

" David was once a shepherd," said Columbus, 
" and I serve the same God who placed him on a 
throne." 

As we draw near Barbadoes, and, in the cer- 
tainty on the morrow of entering our haven, let 
us meditate what must have been his thoughts and 
feelings, when, after many years of contest and delay, 
and among his superstitious crew, he stood in the 
noon of night, on his vessel's deck, and for the first 
time, saw a moving light on shore: — 

c 



18 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Chosen of men ! 'Twas thine, at noon of night, 
First from the prow to hail the glimmering light ; 
(Emblem of truth divine, whose secret ray 
Enters the soul, and makes the darkness day.) 
"Pedro! Rodrigo! there, meihought it shone! 
There — in the west! and now, alas, 'tis gone ! — 
'Twas all a dream ; we gaze and gaze in vain ! 
But mark and speak not ; there it comes again, — 
It moves!— what form unseen, what being there 
With torch-like lustre fires the murky air? 
His instincts, passions, say, how like our own 1 
Oh ! when will day reveal a world unknown V 

Rogers. 



CLIMATE,— HEALTH. 

It may not be out of place here to add some few 
remarks on the climate of the West Indies, its in- 
fluence on invalids, the most favourable season for 
arrival, and a few precautionary words to travellers 
from Europe. 

It is admitted that at particular seasons the climate 
in some parts is unhealthy, and from the unfavour- 
able situations of most of the towns, the mortality 
is great, as in the Havana and Vera Cruz; but there 
are other parts which can always be resorted to, 
while in the mountainous districts almost an Euro- 
pean climate may be obtained. We would instance 
the windward islands from Barbadoes to St. Thomas, 
and the Danish island of Santa Cruz. In these is- 
lands the temperature varies but slightly, ranging 
between 78° F. and 82°, but in the higher parts even 
60° has been registered. Throughout these islands 
little sickness ever prevails, and many persons may 
be found who have resided there without any ill 



CLIMATE, HEALTH. 



19 



effects for forty years. Jamaica is not generally so 
free from sickness; but this may be accounted for 
from the numerous shipping, and the irregularity of 
living in all sea-port towns; for, sickness in the West 
Indies is owing more to imprudence of living, than 
to the climate, — a fact that is represented in all 
medical works treating of tropical diseases. The 
interior of Jamaica is healthy, and a temperature of 
58° is observed in the mountains. 

Under these circumstances we are inclined to 
believe that the climate is not naturally unhealthy; 
and we trust that the name of West Indies will no 
longer strike terror into the ear of Europeans. 

Its beneficial influence on invalids is a subject 
which merits considerable attention. Consumption 
and nervous diseases have yielded to a residence of 
more or less length in the islands named. Grenada 
presents every attraction, a fine and unvarying cli- 
mate, magnificent scenery, and the grand foliage of 
the tropics. Santa Cruz, one of the finest islands 
in the West Indies, well cultivated even to the 
highest lands, presents the picture of a perfect gar- 
den. Here, to all the beauties of nature, are added 
good roads from one end of the island to the other; 
and the hospitality of the Danish inhabitants, whose 
habits and feelings much resemble the English, 
united with comfortable residences, render this one 
of the most desirable places of resort. Many Ame- 
rican invalids frequent this island, and they give 
most favourable reports of the beneficial influence of 
its climate. 

It is admitted that to enjoy the full benefit of 
change of climate the patient should make the 
change in the earhj stage of disease, and stay there- 



20 THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 

till permanent benefit is obtained. The advantages 
to be derived from a residence in the tropics are 
more rapid and lasting than in a climate like the 
Azores which is humid, and variable in its tempe- 
rature. And for incipient consumption, a residence 
in the tropics is more strongly recommended than 
any other climate. The subject is worthy of deep 
consideration to those whose dearest hopes and 
wishes are often frustrated when brightest, and 
whose feelings in after life would be soothed by the 
consoling reflection of having saved the life of a 
husband, wife, or child, by a timely and well-chosen 
change of residence. The period for arrival is of 
much moment. The finest season is from October 
to June, as this interval is free from the torrents 
which fall in the intermediate time, and then com- 
mences what is called the unhealthy season. 

The effect of a tropical climate upon Europeans 
is a subject too lengthy to enter fully upon here, and 
must be left to medical writers, as it is intimately 
connected with disease. Speaking generally, the 
effect of the climate is to produce great perspiration, 
which, although unpleasant, must not be checked, 
but rather encouraged. This is done by wearing 
thin flannel jackets next the skin, and not too light 
clothing. Attempting to remove the annoyance of 
the perspiration by checking it has caused many a 
fever and early death. Indeed, flannel jackets, and 
light calico drawers should always be worn as under 
clothing. Old residents know the advantages of this 
plan, and the safety to be derived from its continuance. 

The mode of living should be regular but gene- 
rous; excess, as also a too abstemious diet, should 
be avoided. The greatest attention must be paid 



CLIMATE; — HEALTH. 

to the alimentary secretions, as a disordered state of 
the bowels is the first indication of tropical disease. 

We would impress particularly upon Europeans, 
that too much attention cannot he paid to these 
matters; for the constitution undergoes a decided 
change from the change of climate. 

As perspiration is great, it follows that much 
thirst results. The difficulty now occurs, how is 
this to be satisfied? All heating drinks must be 
avoided, as Sherry and Port wine; but light wines 
may be taken, as Claret, Hock, Sauterne, &c; and 
very weak brandy and water, which is not unwhole- 
some, but promotes and sustains perspiration. It 
only remains for us to add, that regularity of living 
is the grand secret of health, and attention to the 
foregoing observations will most assuredly preserve it. 

Sir James Clark writes thus of the invalid; and 
his caution may be observed with advantage by all. 

"On approaching the tropics, when about the 
24th or 25th degree of latitude, where the tempe- 
rature ranges from 70° to 80°, a degree of general ex- 
citement is very often experienced, with a disposition 
to catarrhal affections, which demands particular at- 
tention on the part of the invalid labouring under 
any chronic pulmonary disease. 

"The proper means to prevent any injurious 
effects from the increase of temperature, is to live 
somewhat more abstemiously than usual, and upon 
less exciting food. The quantity of wine generally 
drunk should be diminished, or it may be advisable 
to abstain from wine altogether. Long exposure to 
the direct rays of the sun should also be avoided. 
Attention to these circumstances, with the use of a 
little cooling laxative medicine, will generally be all 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



that is necessary on arriving in the West Indies. 
For some time afterwards, a continuance of the same 
simple, unexciting regimen should be persevered in, 
in order that the system may become habituated to 
the exciting influence of a high temperature, and 
until the increased cutaneous secretion, which ap- 
pears to be one of the principal means employed by 
nature to enable the living body to bear the heat of 
a tropical climate without injury, is fully established." 

"The Englishman in Jamaica/' observes Professor 
Liebig in his Animal Chemistry, "sees with regret 
the disappearance of his appetite, previously a source 
of frequently recurring enjoyment; and he succeeds 
by the use of cayenne pepper and the most powerful 
stimulants, in enabling himself to take as much food 
as he was accustomed to eat at home. But the 
whole of the carbon thus introduced into the system 
is not consumed; the temperature of the air is too 
high, and the oppressive heat does not allow him to 
increase the number of respirations by active exer- 
cise, and thus to proportion the waste to the amount 
of food taken; disease of some kind, therefore, 
ensues." 



( 23 ) 




BARBADOES, 

Though a low island, may be seen 11 leagues 
off; and as we draw near through this smooth water, 
for the first time breaks on our view the luxuriant 
and everlasting foliage of the tropics. 

This island is about the size and height of the 
Isle of Wight. The estates are said to average 
200 acres, and upon each of these there are a num- 
ber of negro dwelling-houses, the planter's house, 
and a sugar work; which, uniting with the great 
varieties of tropical trees and shrubs, form a scene 
highly picturesque, and give Barbadoes the appearance 
of a cluster of villages, and a characteristic beauty, — 
that of finished cultivation and domestic comfort. 

Barbadoes is one of the healthiest islands; it is 
almost entirely free from marshy grounds and from 
being cultivated throughout, and comparatively level, 



24 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



it affords more opportunities of exercise than many 
others. 

It is the most easterly of the Caribbee islands., 
and lies between 59° 50' and 60° 2' W. long.: and 
12° 56' and 13° 16' N. lat. It is about 25 miles 
from North to South, and 15 from East to West, 
and contains 107,000 acres of land, the most of 
which is highly cultivated. It is divided into five 
districts and eleven parishes. As the seat of Govern- 
ment, it comprises within its jurisdiction Grenada, 
St. Vincent, and Tobago; each of which, however, 
retains its separate legislature. 

It was probably first discovered by the Portuguese 
in their voyages from Brazil, and from them it 
received the name it still retains. It was found 
without occupants or claimants, having been deserted 
by the Caribbees; and the Portuguese, regarding it 
as of little value, left it in the state as when dis- 
covered by them. Formal possession was afterwards 
taken of the island by an English vessel, the crew 
of which landed there in 1605; and on the spot 
where James Town was afterwards built, set up a 
cross with this inscription, " James, King of Eng- 
land, and this island." But no settlement was made 
until some years afterwards, a grant of the island 
having been made by King James to the Earl of 
Marlborough (Lord Ley), and William Deane being 
appointed his governor, a vessel arrived in 1624, 
and laid the foundations of James Town, which was 
the first English settlement in the island. Barbadoes 
is commonly considered as having also been the first 
English settlement in the West Indies, but Edwards 
shows that St. Kitt's came into British possession in 
1623. 



BARBAD0E5* 



25 



The A\ per cent. Crown duties, so long a heavy 
burden on this and the other colonies obtained by 
conquest, were thus imposed : after the Restoration, 
Lord Willoughby, who had been Governor for Lord 
Carlisle under Charles L, applied to Charles II. to 
be re-appointed. This the inhabitants opposed, and 
sought to be placed entirely under the Royal Govern- 
ment. They insisted that Lord Carlisle's patent was 
void in law, and their case was referred by Charles to 
a committee of the Privy Council. During the discus- 
sions before the Council, an offer having been made by 
one of the planters to raise a per centage duty on the 
produce of their estates, on condition that the King 
should take the sovereignty into his own hands, 
Charles greedily grasped at the offer; and though the 
authority of the person who made it was on the 
very next day denied by the planters, the hope thus 
raised in the mind of the needy and extravagant mo- 
narch, of realizing a revenue of considerable amount, 
was not speedily to be relinquished. His Council 
very readily seconded his views; the unfortunate 
planters had no power to resist. Every art of cajo- 
lery and intimidation was used, and the result was 
the following compromise. The Crown procured the 
surrender of the Carlisle patent, and engaged to 
confirm the planters in the legal possession of their 
estates; in consideration of which, the Assembly of 
Barbadoes was to grant to the King, his heirs and 
successors, a permanent and irrevocable revenue of 
4|- per cent., to be paid in specie on all dead com- 
modities of the growth of the island, that should be 
shipped off the same. Out of this the King was to 
pay one or two claimants, and the Governor's salary, 
£1,200 per annum. The 4\ per cent, duty was 



26 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



granted by act of the island passed the 12th of 
September, 1663. It was repealed on the 10th Octo- 
ber, 1838, by the Act 1st and 2nd Victoria, c. 92. 

The Council is composed of 12 members. The 
Governor sits in council even when the Council are 
sitting in their legislative capacity; a method which 
in other colonies would be considered as improper 
and unconstitutional. The Assembly consists of 22, 
of whom 12 are a quorum. They are elected from 
the different parishes, and every person electing, or 
elected, must be a white man, professing the Chris- 
tian religion, and a free or naturalized subject of 
Great Britain, having attained the age of 21. He 
must also possess a certain qualification in land. 

The highest land is in the north-eastern quarter, 
called Scotland, which is hilly and bleak; its greatest 
elevation is about 1100 feet above the sea. 

Scotland has been found to be one of the most 
healthy situations in the West Indies; and invalid 
soldiers have been removed to the hospital there with 
great advantage to their general health. This island 
is rather cooler — probably because of its being small 
and level — than the other islands to the northward: 
the N. E. trade-wind constantly blows over it. Hur- 
ricanes, which frequently desolate the other islands, 
have not visited Barbadoes with any severity since 
the memorable one of 1780, which laid it waste. 

The chief town is called Bridgetown, situate on 
the north side of Carlisle Bay, upon the S. W. side 
of the island. It covers an extent of nearly two 
miles along the shore, and contains about 20,000 
inhabitants. It has a cathedral and some handsome 
houses, but the want of good shop-windows, and 
the extreme irregularity of the buildings, impart a 



BARBADOES. 



27 



meanness of appearance. At the southern extremity 
of the town is the naval Dock-yard and the garrison 
of St. Anne's; the barracks of the latter are large 
and spacious buildings, with covered galleries, front- 
ing a very fine and extensive parade. A small assem- 
blage of houses on the western coast, at about five 
miles to the northward of Bridgetown, bears the name 
of Holetown, and is remarkable, as before noted, for 
being the first settlement of the English, who landed 
in the neighbourhood, and called their hamlet James- 
town, in honor of the first Stuart. 

Speightstown, three and a half miles more to the 
northward, has a roadstead and wharf. 

There is a daily communication between these 
places; it is a very beautiful excursion, and the wind 
rarely fails either way. The view from Dover Hill, 
a fortress and signal station, half a mile from Speights- 
town, is very interesting. The houses are nearly 
lost in the foliage of gardens and cane-fields, and 
the almost painted sky shines in still sky-blue between 
the slender stems of the thousands of cocoa-nut trees 
which form a green fence upon the shore. " A cane- 
field," observes a traveller, "is one of the most 
beautiful productions that the pen or pencil can pos- 
sibly describe. It commonly rises from three to 
eight feet in height; a difference in growth that very 
strongly marks the difference of soil or the varieties 
of culture. It is when ripe of a bright and golden 
yellow; and where obvious to the sun is in many 
parts very beautifully streaked with red; the top is 
of a darkish green, but becomes, either from an 
excess of ripeness or a continuance of drought, of a 
russet yellow, with long and narrow leaves depending, 
from the centre of which shoots up an arrow-like and 



28 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



silver wand, from two to six feet in height, and from 
the summit of which grows out a plume of white 
feathers, which are delicately tinged with a lilac dye." 

The steamer comes within a mile of the shore. 
The cost of landing by shore boats is from one dollar 
to ooe and a half. Passengers do not require to 
bring passports; nor is their luggage examined with 
any great strictness. 

There are several hotels of respectability, whose 
charges are not so moderate as in other islands, but 
the accommodations are excellent. Poultry is good 
and abundant; as are also meat and vegetables. 

The roads over the island are excellent, and the 
views rich in the extreme. Horse and carriage hire 
are moderate. Bathing-houses are numerous along 
the sea-shore, and the charges very low. 

There are two literary societies in the town, which 
consist of all the leading persons in the colony, have 
good libraries, and give good dinners four times a 
year. There is also an agricultural society, and one 
or two commercial rooms. 

There are several schools in the island under the 
superintendence of the Established clergy, Church 
Missionary Society, and Wesleyans. The total num- 
ber of scholars in 1841, in public or free schools, 
was 7,068, male and female; these were chiefly sup- 
ported by parochial grants and a bequest by the 
colony. In 1842, the total number of scholars was 
3,486, but in this return the Sunday scholars were 
not given. 

Codrington College is romantically situated on the 
borders of Barbadian Scotland, fourteen miles from 
Bridgetown; a steep cliff rises on one side of it, 
from the foot of which an avenue of magnificent 



BARB A DOES. 



29 



cabbage-trees leads up to the lawn in front of the 
building; and on the other side the ground gradually 
slopes away to some small rocks over the sea. This 
college was founded and liberally endowed by Colonel 
Codrington; and two sugar estates have been also 
bequeathed to the Society for the propagation of the 
Gospel in support of the college, and for a school 
attached to it; and here young men have not only 
the benefit of a university education, but receive 
orders, and are allowed to exercise their pastoral 
functions throughout the Leeward islands. There 
are 12 exhibitions on the foundation. It is also 
intended to appropriate this seminary for the recep- 
tion and instruction of catechists. Upon the estates 
of the college there is a chapel, a school, and an 
hospital, almost exclusively for the use of the negroes. 

Population. 



1841 120,500 

Baptisms. 

1841 4.475 

1842 5,472 



1841 



Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1841 .. 738 78,301 5,648 

1842 .. 772 81,049 5,987 



1842 Incomplete. 

Marriages. Burials, 

782 .... 1,652 
1,092 .... 1,634 



1,124 men. 



Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1841 .. 742 80,800 5,792 

1842 .. 739 80,212 5,741 



Militia. 
1,446 men. 1842 

Shipping. 



Wages of Labourers. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. 

Domestic, per month 1841 1 13 4 1842 1 13 4 

Predial, per day ,, 0 13 0 13 

Trades „ „ 0 2 6 „ 0 2 6 



30 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Prices of Provisions. 



Sterling Prices. 

Wheaten Bread, per lb.. . 1841 

Beef ,, .. „ 

Mutton „ .. „ 

Pork „ . . „ 

Rice per cwt. 

Coffee , 

Tea per lb. ,, 

Sugar per cwt. ,, 



t 


s. 


d. 




£ 




d. 


A 

u 


U 


0 




u 


n. 
U 


0 


0 


1 


0 


n 


0 


1 


0 


0 


1 


3 


n 


0 


1 


3 


0 


0 


10 


n 


0 


0 


10 


0 


18 


9 


n 


0 


18 


0 


5 


0 


0 


>» 


5 


0 


0 


0 


6 


8 


n 


0 


6 


8 


1 


10 


0 


ji 


1 


10 


0 



Course of Exchange, 1841 and 1842 — Fluctuating from 
£152 10s. to £160. 

Declared value of Imports and Exports in 1840 was — 

Imports.. £599, 139 0 0 Exports.. £344,297 0 0 
Proportion of Compensation, paid under the Emancipation 
Act— £1, 721,345 19s. 7d. sterling. 

The following Newspapers are published in Bridgetown : — 

The Barbadian. ... ^ Saturday \ A.Clinckett,Esq. Est. 1822 
The Liberal same days . . S. J. Prescod, ,, ,, 1837 

Barbadoes Mercury ^ g^today . & \ H * Kin g & " » 1833 

Barbadoes Globe .. ^ Thm-sday. & $ A * G ' Drinan > » » 1819 
The West Indian same days J.Y.Edghill&Co. ,, ,, 1833 

, • S Tuesday & } H. W. Perkins 
The Standard j Friday J & Co „ „ 1843 



( 31 ) 




H.£ TIBI EKRENT ARTIS. 



GRENADA. 

After remaining a short time at Barbadoes, the 
steamer from England proceeds to Grenada, distant 
140 miles. She goes alongside the company's wharf 
in Saint George's Harbour, and passengers can walk 
on shore. 

Grenada was discovered by Columbus, on his third 
voyage, in 1498. It was settled by the French about 
1650, and ceded to Great Britain, by the treaty of 
Paris, 176*3. It is situated between the parallels of 
12° 20' and 11° 58' N. lat., and 61° 20' and 61° 35' 
W. long. It is computed to be about 24 miles in 
length, 1 2 in its greatest breadth, and contains about 
80,000 acres of land, which is divided into six pa- 
rishes. There are several smaller islands, supposed 
to be 120 in number, called the Grenadines, in the 
vicinity of Grenada. But few of these, however, 
are comprised in the Grenada Government. These 



32 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



islands are now subordinate to the Governor of Bar- 
badoes. 

Under letters patent, bearing date the 9th April, 

1764, an Assembly was first convened in Grenada in 

1 765, the legislative authority having been previously 
exercised by General Melville and his council. 

In July 1779, Grenada was captured by the arms 
of France, but was restored to Great Britain by 
the general pacification which took place in January 
1783, and the English Government was fully re- 
established in 1784, under General Mathew as Go- 
vernor. Since that time this island, with its depen- 
dencies, has been governed (according to the usual 
custom) under commissions granted by the Crown to 
the successive Governors, with accompanying instruc- 
tions; and the legislative power has continued to be 
vested in the Governor and Council and the House 
of Assembly. The Governor presides solely in the 
Courts of Chancery and Ordinary. His salary is 
£3,200 currency per annum, which is raised by a 
poll-tax on all salaries; and it is the practice in 
Grenada to pass a salary Bill on the arrival of every 
new Governor, to continue during his government. 

The Council consists of 12 members, and the 
Assembly of 26. A freehold or life estate of 50 
acres, is a qualification to sit as a representative for 
the parishes; and a freehold or life estate with £50 
house rent in St. George's, qualifies a representative 
for the town. An estate of 10 acres in fee or for 
life, or a rent of £10 in any of the out towns, gives 
a vote for the representatives of each parish respect- 
ively; and a rent of £20 per annum, issuing out of 
any freehold or life estate in the town of St. George, 
gives a vote for a representative for the town. 

Grenada has never been subject to the A\ per cent. 



GRENADA. 



33 



Crown duties. The Crown attempted to impose this tax 
by proclamation, after the grant of a legislative assem- 
bly had passed the great seal; but it was successfully 
resisted by the colony in the Court of King's Bench, 
in England, Lord Mansfield declaring it to be the 
judgment of the Court that the prerogative of the 
King before the date of the proclamation was clear, 
but that by that proclamation and commission the 
King had immediately and irrevocably granted to the 
inhabitants of Grenada, or to those who held pro- 
perty in the island, that the subordinate legislation 
over the island should be exercised by an assembly, 
with the consent of the Governor in council. By this 
decision the Crown duty was not imposed on Gre- 
nada, nor on the islands of Dominica, St. Vincent, 
or Tobago, which were then comprised under the 
government of Grenada. 

St. George's, the capital of Grenada, which is built 
upon a peninsula, projecting into a spacious bay, called 
St. George's harbour, is on the west or lee side of the 
island, not far from the southern extremity. It is 
embosomed in an amphitheatre of hills, and chiefly 
situated on elevations which rise from the bay; the 
consequence is, that the streets are steep. The houses 
are well built, and on the whole the town has a hand- 
some appearance. It is divided by a ridge, which 
running into the sea, forms one side of what is termed 
the Carenage; which is a large basin of water, sur- 
rounded by wharfs, and in the vicinity of which the 
principal merchants reside. In this Carenage the 
ships lie land-locked, and in deep water, close to the 
wharfs. The entrance is defended by a citadel, 
called Fort George, which is built upon a rocky 
eminence. On the left, the land rises gradually to 

D 



34 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



some height, on which elevation the fortifications of 
Hospital Hill are erected, and a long ridge, which 
falls towards the middle, connects this fort with 
Richmond Heights, and constitute the back-ground 
of the scene. These heights are also fortified. Upon 
this hill are built some of the principal houses, the 
church, and the parsonage. The whole forms a 
scene of great richness and beauty. 

This island being a British colony no passports are 
required. The custom-house officer attends at the 
wharf to examine the luggage. 

There are two banks, — branches of the Colonial 
Bank and West India Bank; English, as also Spanish, 
money is current. Two respectable hotels are close 
to the landing-place; the charges are moderate. The 
town of Saint George's is abundantly supplied with 
water by pipes and fountains. 

There are four places of worship in the town, of 
the Episcopalian, Scotch, Wesleyan, and Roman 
Catholic faiths. 

The scenery of Grenada is romantic and pictu- 
resque in a high degree: it has been styled "the 
most lovely of our West India isles. 3 ' In the N.W. 
are successive piles of conical hills or continuous 
ridges, covered with vast forest trees and brush-wood. 
Its mountains form many fertile valleys, interspersed 
with numerous rivulets, on which water-mills are 
erected for the use of the plantations. Some of the 
mountains rise to the height of more than 3,000 feet 
above the level of the sea. There are delightful drives 
about the island, and some objects of natural curiosity 
worth visiting. In several places are hot springs 
of sulphurous and other mineral waters, emitting a 
strong mephitic air, which instantly kills any small 



GRENADA. 



35 



animal brought too near. There are several indica- 
tions of extinct volcanoes; that called Lake ilntoine 
is the most remarkable, it is now filled with water, 
and about 50 feet deep; and although 18 feet above 
the level of the sea, and has no apparent connexion 
with other water, it has been continually encreasing 
in quantity for the last forty years; it is supposed 
now to cover an area of sixty English acres. Another 
lake, called the Grand Etang, is situated in the inte- 
rior of the island, about seven miles from St. George's. 
The ride to this lake, which should be undertaken 
early in the morning, is truly romantic and pictu- 
resque, and its steep ascent of an Alpine character. 
This lake, as well as the former, is supplied with 
pure fresh water by subterranean springs. 

The range of the thermometer in the shade, for 
the last six years, as registered by Dr. Stephenson 
of St. George's, is from 69° to 93° Farenheit; and 
the fall of rain is inches. The dews are nei- 

ther very copious nor dangerous. No hurricane has 
been experienced here for upwards of 60 years. 
There are no venomous reptiles to the injury of life. 

Captain Leese, is the Agent of the Company at 
Grenada. 



Produce. 





Sugar. — lbs. 


Rum.— gals. 


Molasses.— gals. 


1840 


12,519,895 .. 


.. 395,811 


.. 78,492 


1841 


; 9,904,683 


.. 328,251 


.. 81,325 




Coffee— lbs. 


Cocoa.— lbs. 


Cotton.— lbs. 


1840 


22,665 .. 


.. 238,195 .. 


.. 93,614 


1841 


10,259 .. 


.. 226,480 


45,528 




Including Island of Carriacou. 





d2 



36 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Shipping, 

Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840.. 375.. 20,324.. 2,320 1840.. 388. . 20,164. . 3,333 
1841.. 425.. 23,657.. 2,587 1841.. 428. . 26,801. . 2,569 
1842.. 313.. 16,524..2,050 1842.. 261. . 12,722. . 1,727 

Militia. 

1840 Officers— 104 Privates— 734. . . . Total— 838 

The Militia musters were suspended in the month of Aprils 
1840, and consequently no returns since made. 



Wages of Labourers, 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

Domestic per month. . . . 36s.. . 40s.. . 40s. 

Predial House & Grounds > 2Qs 20g _ 20g 

included S 

Trades . „ .... 80s.. . 80s.. . 80s. 

Prices of Provisions. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

Sterling Prices. £ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Wheaten Bread . . per lb. . . 0 0 4 . . 0 0 4 . . 0 0 4 

Beef „ ..0 0 7£. . 0 0 7 0 0 7 

Mutton „ . . 0 0 10 . . 0 0 10 . . 0 0 10 

Pork „ ..0 0 7}.. 0 0 7 .. 0 0 7 

Rice percwt. 1 5 0..1 5 0..1 5 0 

Coffee per lb. .. 0 1 0 . . 0 1 0 . . 0 1 0 

Tea „ ..0 6 0..0 6 0..0 6 0 

Sugar „ ..0 0 6..0 0 6..0 0 6 

Ditto, refined „ ..0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 



From 1st Jan. 1841, the currency same as in Great Britain. 
Cut monies and " dogs" have been called in. 

Population Returns not given. Returns of Schools and 
Scholars defective. 

The proportion of Slave Compensation paid to the Pro- 
prietors, was .£616,444 17s. Od. 



GRENADA. 37 

Two Newspapers are published in St. George's :-— - 

The St. George's Chronicle, on Saturday, by D. J. David- 
son, Esq. Established 1742. 

Grenada Free Press, on Wednesday, by J. R. M'Combie. 
Esq. Established 1826. 



( 38 ) 




JIISCERIQUE PROBAT POPULUS BT FjEJDERA JUNGI, 



TRINIDAD. 

The distance from Grenada to Trinidad is about 90 
miles; and you soon come within sight of the beau- 
tifully-wooded mountains of this magnificent island. 
It lies between 10° and 11° of N. lat., and 61° and 
63° of W. long. Its extreme breadth from E. to W. 
is between 60 and 70 miles, and 50 from N. to S. 
The name was given by Columbus from the circum- 
stance of three of the highest peaks of the moun- 
tains having first appeared to him on approaching 
land. It was on his third voyage on 31st July, 
1498. Having been in great danger in a violent 
storm, he made a vow to give the name of the Holy 
Trinity to the first land he should find; soon after 
which a sailor in the main-top saw three points of 
land, whereby the name fitted every way to his vow. 
The Spaniards did not attempt to make any settle- 
ment on the island till 90 years after its discovery. 



TRINIDAD. 



39 



It was almost immediately captured by Sir TV. 
Raleigh in 1 595, but speedily fell again into the 
power of the Spaniards. In 1797, Trinidad was 
captured by the troops under Sir R. Abercromby. 
It was ceded by the Spaniards at the peace of Amiens, 
and has since continued in the possession of the 
British. 

The steamer goes through the Bocas de Huevos, 
which is narrow; but the Boca Grande, or large pas- 
sage, into the Gulf of Paria, is that used by large 
sailing ships, and is about 5 miles wide, with the 
shores of South America on the right hand. Imme- 
diately on arrival the ship is boarded by the harbour- 
master, who is also health officer, and admits the 
ship to pratique. 

A writer in 182.5, thus describes the appearance 
of the Gulf of Paria: "Having entered the Gulf 
of Paria the water appeared of the purest ultrama- 
rine. On the right hand the mountains of Cumana, 
with their summits lost in the clouds; on the left, 
the immense precipices of Trinidad, covered to the 
extremest height with gigantic trees, which seem to 
swim in the middle ether; the margin fringed with 
the evergreen mangroves, which were here hanging 
with their branches bathed in the water, and there, 
themselves rising out of the midst of the soft waves; 
behind us, the four mouths of the Dragon of Co- 
lumbus, with the verdant craggy isles between them ; 
before us, the Port of Spain, the capital, with its 
beautiful churches, the great Savana, and the closing 
hills of Montserrat. 

" Meanwhile, the long dark canoes glanced by, 
with their white sails almost kissing the sea, and 
enormous whales, ever and anon lifted their mon- 



40 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



strous bodies quite out of the water in strange gam- 
bols, and falling down, created a tempest around 
them, and shot up columns of silver foam." 

Not only are the mountains of this magnificent 
island beautifully wocded, but there are several rivers 
navigable far into the interior, irrigating and afford- 
ing communication with millions of acres of virgin 
soil, where no foot but that of the Indian or Maroon 
negro has made an impress; it holds out, therefore, 
most advantageous prospects to the capitalist settler. 

In the Gulf of Parla fish is so abundant that the 
greater part of the West Indies might be supplied. 
Shell-fish is particularly fine. 

Coal has been found, and of good quality, in more 
than one part of the island, but the want of labour 
precludes its being worked. 

In landing there is not the least danger, for there 
is no surf, and the public wharf extends far into the 
water, so that boats may approach at all times and 
at all hours. 

You are about a mile from the shore, and are soon 
surrounded by shore-boats. You must make your 
bargain with these ; from sixty cents, equal to 2s. 6d. 
sterling, or a dollar, according to quantity of luggage 
and delay, is fair pay. 

If from England, or an English island, there is 
no examination of your luggage; but it is examined 
if from a foreign port, and a small ad valorem duty 
of from 3 to 1\ per cent, is sometimes charged on 
articles of foreign manufacture. It is very rarely, 
however, that any duties are charged. 

There are two banks in Port of Spain, the Colonial 
and West India; and both British money and Spanish 
dollars are current. 



TRINIDAD, 



41 



Port of Spain is one of the finest towns in the 
West Indies. The streets, of which there are five 
miles within the suburbs, are wide, long, and laid 
out at right angles; no house is now allowed to be 
built of wood, and no erection of any sort can be 
made except in a prescribed line. Port of Spain is 
one of the few towns in the West India colonies 
that has obtained civic self-rule. There is a public 
walk, embowered in trees, and similar in all respects 
to the Terreiro in Funchal, and a spacious market- 
place, with a market-house or shambles, in excellent 
order and cleanliness. The Spanish and French fe- 
males, their gay costume, their foreign language, and 
their unusual vivacity, give this market the appear- 
ance of a merry fair in France. 

The Protestant church is beautifully situated with 
a large enclosed lawn in front. It is wainscotted 
inside with the various rich woods of the island. The 
Roman Catholic church, capable of containing 5000 
persons, is also a fine building, and is situate on the 
southern extremity of the town: having two towers, 
it is very conspicuous from the anchorage. Its bishop 
is called the Bishop of Olympus. There is also a 
chapel, that of Santa Maria, used by seceders from 
the Catholic church. 

There are several excellent hotels, some close to 
the landing-place, that have abundance of good water. 
Vehicles and horses are to be had for hire at the 
Brunswick Stables. 

Passports are not needed on arriving; nor on 
leaving, except to a foreign port. In this case it can 
be obtained from the Secretary of the Colony, at the 
expense of a dollar and a personal visit. 

There is a theatre, occupied by a French company, 
and two news and billiard-rooms. 



42 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Three companies of white troops and one of black, 
and a detachment of artillery are generally quartered 
in the capital. 

The large number of religious places of worship 
throughout the island, shows a commendable desire 
among the inhabitants for religious instruction. There 
are now six Episcopalian, thirteen Roman Catholic, 
and five Wesleyan chapels scattered through the 
island, besides those in the capital. This shows a 
marked contrast to what it was ten years ago. 

There are several, from eighteen to twenty, public 
schools in connexion with the Episcopal Church and 
the Church of Rome, both supported by Govern- 
ment; others supported by the Church Missionary 
Society, and some private schools. In all these both 
French and English are taught. There is a colonial 
hospital for 110 patients, established by Sir Henry 
M'Leod; also a house of refuge and a leper asy- 
lum. There are several mineral springs in the 
colony. 

The island is governed by a Governor and Le- 
gislative Council, composed of six official and six 
non-official members, with powers to pass their own 
laws, subject to the approbation of the Secretary of 
State. The Bishop of the Diocese is also a member 
of Council, and may sit and vote at the Board. The 
laws in force are the laws of Spain, as established at 
the time of the conquest by the English, with such 
alterations only as have been made in them by orders 
in Council, to which this island, as a colony by con- 
quest, is subject. 

The thermometer in the shade, at the warmest 
part of the day, say two p.m., may be stated at 84° 
to 86°; at five a.m., it is 76°. The climate is pecu- 
liarly suitable for people advanced in life, labouring 



TRINIDAD. 



.43 



under rheumatism, dyspepsia, or incipient phthisis. 
By leaving Europe in October, and living temperately 
in this colony, their lives might be prolonged many 
years. Endemic fevers are scarcely known; and, 
from the careful attention of Dr. Murray in the vac- 
cine establishment, the island is kept free from small 
pox. 

The dry season is from Christmas to the end of 
May; dry weather sometimes occurs in parts of Sep- 
tember and October. In June the wet season com- 
mences, and the rain falls in torrents, with the winds 
variable from W. to S.E. 

The dews are very copious; and though not dan- 
gerous, they should be avoided by Europeans. The 
clothing should be of thin flannel next the skin, 
light linen jackets, and thin woollen socks. White 
light beaver hats are preferable to black. A water- 
proof outer coat, for the wet season, should be pro- 
vided, and the thin Codrington coat or wrapper is 
appropriate all the year. 

The island is exceedingly well supplied with medi- 
cal practitioners; some of the most esteemed are 
Doctors Xeilson, Hartle, O'Connor, Murray, &c. &c. 

The town is very healthy. The population, by the 
census completed in 1843, was 16,106 persons. 

Robert Dennistoun, Esq., is the Agent for the 
Royal Mail Steam Packet Company in Port of Spain. 

Besides the beautiful scenery in the Island of 
Trinidad, there are some natural curiosities that are 
worth visiting. These are the Pitch Lake at Point 
la Brae; the hot springs at Point a Pierre; the mud 
volcanoes; and the remarkable caves in the small 
Island of Gasparie. 

"Every one who goes to Trinidad," says Mr. 



44 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Coleridge " should make a point of visiting the Indian 
Missions of Arima and Savana Grande. They are 
wholly unlike anything which I had ever before seen ; 
and differ as much from the negro-yard on the one 
hand, as they do from an European-built town on 
the other. 

" The village of Savana Grande consisted chiefly 
of two rows of houses iu parallel lines, with a spa- 
cious street or promenade between them, over which 
there was so little travelling, that the green grass 
was growing luxuriantly upon it. Each house is 
insulated by an interval of ten or fifteen feet on either 
side; they are large and lofty, and being beautifully 
constructed of spars of bamboo, and thatched with 
palm branches, they are always ventilated in the most 
agreeable manner. A projection of roof in front is 
supported by posts, and forms a shady gallery, under 
which the Indians will sit for hours together in mo- 
tionless silence. 

"They seem to be the identical race of people 
whose forefathers Columbus discovered, and the 
Spaniards worked to death in Hispaniola. They are 
short in stature, (none that I saw exceeded five feet 
six inches), yellow in complexion, their eyes dark, 
their hair long, lank, and glossy as the raven's wing; 
they have a remarkable space between the nostrils 
and the upper lip, and a breadth and massiveness 
between the shoulders, that would do credit to the 
Farnese Hercules. Their hands and feet are small- 
boned and delicately shaped. Nothing seems to 
affect them like other men; neither joy nor sorrow, 
anger or curiosity, take any hold of them. Both 
mind and body are drenched in the deepest apathy; 
the children lie quietly on their mothers' bosoms; 



TRINIDAD. 



45 



silence is in their dwellings, and idleness in all their 
ways." 

There are schools appointed, in which the negroes 
and the Indians are educated, and the penmanship 
of the latter is remarkable for its beauty. The con- 
trast between these two races is very striking, and is 
thus described by the same lively writer. 

" Their complexions do not differ so much as their 
minds and dispositions. In the first, life stagnates; 
in the last, it is tremulous with irritability. The 
negroes cannot be silent; they talk in spite of 
themselves. Every passion acts upon them with 
strange intensity; their anger is sudden and furious; 
their mirth clamorous and excessive; their curiosity 
audacious; and their love the sheer demand for gra- 
tification of an ardent animal desire. Yet by their 
nature they are good-humoured in the highest degree. 
It is said that even the negroes despise the Indians, 
and I think it very probable; they are decidedly 
inferior as intelligent beings. Indeed their history 
and existence form a deep subject for speculation. 
The flexibility of temper of the rest of mankind has 
been for the most part denied to them; they wither 
under transportation, they die under labour; they 
will never willingly or generally amalgamate* with 
the races of Europe or Africa; if left to themselves 
with ample means of subsistence, they decrease in 
numbers every year; if compelled to any kind of im- 
provement, they reluctantly acquiesce, and relapse 
with certainty the moment the external compulsion 
ceases. They shrink before the approach of other 
nations as it were by instinct; and they are not now 

* Note to Second Edition : This is now authoritatively contradicted. 



46 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



known in vast countries of which they were once the 
only inhabitants. In 1824, the number of the In- 
dians was computed to be 893 in Trinidad." 

Mr. Montgomery Martin, in his Colonial Library, 
gives the following description of the Pitch Lake. 

" This lake is situated on the westward side of the 
island, on a small peninsular jutting out into the 
sea about two miles, and elevated 80 feet above the 
level of the ocean. It is nearly circular, and better 
than half a league in length, and the same in breadth. 
The variety and extraordinary mobility of the phe- 
nomenon is very remarkable. Groups of beautiful 
shrubs and flowers, tufts of wild pine-apples and 
aloes ; swarms of magnificent butterflies, and brilliant 
humming-birds enliven a scene which would be an 
earthly representation of Tartarus without them. 
With regard to its mobility, where a small islet has 
been seen on an evening, a gulf is found on the fol- 
lowing morning, and on another part of the lake a 
pitch islet has sprung up, to be in its turn adorned 
with the most luxuriant vegetation and then again 
engulphed. The appearance of this lake is like pit 
coal, except in hot weather, when it is liquid an inch 
deep. Crevices, sometimes six feet deep, are found 
in the pitch, filled with excellent limpid running 
water, and often containing a great quantity of mullet 
and small fish. 

" The bottoms of these crevices are so liquid, 
that marked poles thrust in disappear, and have been 
found a few days after on the sea shore. (?) During 
the rainy season it is possible to walk over nearly all 
the lake, but in hot weather part is not to be ap- 
proached. No bottom has ever been found to the 
lake. On standing still near the centre, the surface 



TRINIDAD. 



47 



gradually sinks, forming a sort of bowl, and when 
the shoulders become level with the lake, it is high 
time to get out. The flow of pitch has been im- 
mense, and the appearance of that which is hardened, 
is as if the whole surface had boiled up in large bub- 
bles, and then suddenly cooled, but where it is liquid 
it is perfectly smooth.' 5 

Forty miles south of the Pitch Lake are several 
mud volcanoes, in a plain not more than four feet 
above the general surface. These come into action in 
the month of February or March, at about full moon, 
and send up fluid mud into the air, to the height of 
30 or 40 feet, with a report at each time as if a heavy 
gun were discharged. The largest is about 150 
feet in diameter, and has boiling mud constantly 
bubbling, but never overflowing, remaining always 
within the surface of the crater. When the old cra- 
ters cease to act, new ones invariably appear in the 
vicinity. During the hottest months cold mud, 20° 
lower than the atmosphere, is thrown up, and the 
volcano is unapproachable to within fifty paces. 

To the eastward of Port of Spain is a marsh of 
several thousand acres in extent, called the Grand 
Savannah, on which vast multitudes of cattle are 
allowed to roam and graze at large. It is said that 
the exhalations from this marsh renders Port of Spain 
at times unhealthy. There is a tradition that a 
Dutchman from Guiana, possessed of 500 slaves, 
intended to drain this marsh and settle on it, but 
that before the arrangements were completed, he fell 
into fashionable society in Europe, and ran through 
all his property. In the dry season the Savannah is 
set on fire, and it may be seen blazing and smoking 
for several weeks. In the conflagration myriads of 
snakes and small animals perish. 



48 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Population, Census 1842 — 10 Districts. 

No. of Persons employed in 
Males. Females. Total. Agriculture. Manufactures. Commerce 

24,058. . . . 24,122. . . . 48,180. . . . 15,309. . . . 2,164. . . . 1,361 



Shipping. 



Inwards. Sliips. Tons. Men. 

1840 .. 676 62,113 4,945 

1841 .. 670 61,782 5,153 

1842 .. 640 59,907 4,649 



Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840 .. 659 60,660 4,793 

1841 .. 689 62,012 4,699 

1842 .. 661 60,222 4,878 



Acres of Land under Crop. 

Sugar. Cocoa. Coffee. Cotton. Prov. Pasture. Tot. Uncul. 

1840— 21,710. . 6,910. . 1,095. . 2 . . 6,314. . 7,237 . . 97,256 

1841— 21,710.. 6,910.. 1,095.. 2 ..6,314.-7,237.. 97,256 

1842 wanted. 

Course of Exchange. 

1840— 470 to 490^ per £100 sterling. 

1841— 470 to 485^ 

Whale Fisheries. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

Number of Boats employed. ... 16. . . . 16. . . . 16 

Whales taken 29 28 — 

Gallons of Oil 28,545. . . . 27,561. . . . — 

Value in sterling of Oil £2,931 .... £2,872. ... — 

Price of Oil per gallon 2s. Id 2s. Id... 35 cents. 

Note. There are four Whale Fisheries in the Island, viz., one 
at Gasparillo, two at Monos Island, and one at Chacachacare. 

The proportion of Slave Compensation paid to Trinidad was 
£1,039,119 Is. 3d. 

There are two Newspapers published in Port of Spain : — 

Port of Spain Gazette, published Tuesday and Friday, by 
H. J. Mills, Esq. Established 1826. 

Trinidad Standard, on the same days, by J. M'Swiney, Esq. 
Established 1838. 



( 49 ) 




PULCHRIOR EVEXIT. 



TOBAGO 

Is 120 miles from Barbadoes, and 85 miles from 
Grenada. It is the most southerly of the Caribbee 
islands, lying in lat. 11° 10' N. and 59° 40' W. from 
London. It is somewhat more than 30 miles in length 
from N.E. to S.W.; between 8 and 9 in breadth; 
and from 23 to 25 leagues in circumference. It is 
divided into seven districts, called divisions, and the 
same number of parishes. 

Tobago was first discovered by Columbus, who gave 
it the present name from Tobacco, the pipe which the 
aborigines, to the surprise of the Spanish, smoked. 
The English visited this island very early, Sir Robert 
Dudley having been there in the reign of Queen 
Elizabeth. But no regular system of colonization 
was commenced by the English till 1765. After 
many changes of possession between the French and 

E 



50 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



English, Tobago was finally ceded to England by the 
treaty of Paris in 1814. It now forms part of the 
General Government of Barbadoes, but continues to 
have its separate House of Assembly and separate 
Judicial Establishments. 

This island presents an irregular mass of conical 
hills and ridges, with numerous valleys, which in 
the southern quarter are less abrupt in their acclivi- 
ties. The soil is generally light and sandy, but 
fertile and well watered by a number of small streams, 
which make their way from the mountains to the sea. 
The coast affords several excellent bays and harbours. 

The steamer proceeds to Courland Bay, on the 
north side. 

Courland is not the capital of Tobago : the capital 
is Scarborough, five miles distant, which is situated 
on the S.W. side of Tobago, and extends, with little 
uniformity, along the sea shore. The cost of a mule 
or ass to Scarborough is about five dollars. 

The steamers generally come in within 200 yards 
of the shore, and passengers are landed by the 
steamers' boats. 

Passengers' luggage is not searched; nor is there 
any need of a passport on arrival; but every person 
about to leave the island must provide himself with 
a pass from the Colonial Secretary's office, which 
costs 8s. Ad. 

Sterling and Spanish money pass current. There 
are two banks at Scarborough, branches of the Co- 
lonial Bank and West India Bank. 

There is but one hotel at Scarborough, the accom- 
modation in which is not of the best description. 
But, so hospitable are the residents, that strangers, 
respectably introduced, are always entertained at the 
houses of the planters and merchants. 



TOBAGO. 



51 



There are three Episcopalian churches, two Mora- 
vian, arid two Weslevan chapels, in the island, to 
which schools are also attached; but the want of 
good teachers is felt. 

Two companies of regular troops are stationed at 
Scarborough. 

The legislature consists of the Executive Council 
and House of Assembly. P. M. Stewart, Esq. M.P., 
is the agent in London for the island. 

This island is so cooled by the sea breezes, that 
its temperature is very supportable to Europeans; 
the average range of the thermometer is 85°. Nor 
is it generally subjected to those dreadful hurricanes 
which are so destructive in many of the other islands. 

The land in the northern part is very mountainous, 
and so high as to be seen, in clear weather, at the 
distance of 12 leagues. 

The island is well watered by rivulets that intersect 
the vallies. Almost every tropical plant grows in 
rich abundance here, as also all the culinary plants 
of Europe. 

The rainy season begins about June, and gradually 
becomes heavy till September; towards the end of 
December, or beginning of January, crop time begins. 

Tobago, as one of the islands ceded to Great 
Britain, is exempt from the A\ per cent. Crown 
duties. 



Area and Population. 



Acres. 



Males. 



Females. 



Total. 



1842—57,408 



5,502 



6,246 



11,748 



Baptisms. 



Marriages. 



Burials. 



1840.. 420 
1841.. 461 
1842.. 571 



97 
216 
243 



111 
107 
80 
E 2 



52 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Value of Imports and Exports for the year 1840. 
Imports. . £64,222. Exports. . £118,819. 

Militia. 

Total 1840. . 229 1841.. 229 1842.. 230 

Schools and Scholars. 
Established Church 10 Schools 

Males. Females. Total. 

1840.. 418 340 758 

1841 , S 1440 

1842 J Totals Qn M , 879 

Free Schools. — The funds are provided partly by the Colony 
and by the Society for the propagation of the Gospel in Foreign 
Parts. Expense £690. 

Wesleyan Schools. . 1840-41. . 3 Schools 1842. . 2 Schools 

Males. Females. Total. 

1840.. 41 27 68 

1841.. 67 46 .. 113 

1842.. 151 117 268 

The Wesleyan Society grants £90, and voluntary contribu- 
tions are also received. 

The Tobago Chronicle newspaper is published on Thursdays, 
at Scarborough, by A. Hislop, Esq. Established 1836. 

The share of the Slave Compensation money paid to Tobago 
was £234,064 5s. Od. 



( 53 ) 




DAMUS FETIMUS QUE VICISSIM. 



DEM ERA RA. 

From Tobago to Demerarathe route is rather against 
the trade-wind, and the ship is partially retarded. 
The calculated speed is six knots; the distance 320 
miles. 

Stretching along the coast of the Atlantic, be- 
tween the lat. of 6° and 8° N., and the long. 57° 
and 59° W., lies that part of Dutch Guiana which 
contains the colony of Demerara, its dependent set- 
tlement of Essequibo, and the colony of Berbice. 
To the S.S.W. the river Courantin separates this tract 
from Surinam; to the N.N.W the small inlet and 
stream of Moroko divides it from the Spanish terri- 
tory on the right bank of the Oroonoko. Its length 
upon the coast, in a straight line, is about 160 miles; 
its breadth is not exactly ascertained, but is nearly 
twice its length, and reaches to the scantily-known 
provinces of New Cumana and New Andalusia, 



54 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



which are claimed by the Spaniards, but which are 
in part inhabited by independent Indian tribes. The 
limits of Berbice, to the S.S.W., formerly extended 
no farther than to the Devil's Creek, but in 1799, 
they were enlarged by the addition of the lands be- 
tween that creek and the river Courantin. The 
opposite boundary of the colony, where Demerara 
commences, passes from the mouth of Abary Creek 
in a straight line to the southward. Between this 
line and a similar one, drawn from the Boarisiree 
Creek at the mouth of the Essequibo River, is 
included the colony of Demerara. The dependency 
of Essequibo occupies the rest of the territory as far 
as the Spanish frontier on the Moroko. The Dutch 
had possession of these places, and also Surinam, 
which took their names from the rivers on which 
they are respectively situated, and were together 
called Dutch Guiana; but after having capitulated to 
the English in 1803, they were ceded in perpetuity as a 
British possession by the convention signed in London 
13th of August, 1814. By an order in council, in 
the year 1831, the colonies of Demerara, Essequibo, 
and Berbice, were united under one government, 
by the title of British Guiana. 

The river of Demerara is half a league wide at the 
entrance, but is obstructed by a bar, on which there 
are only from nine to eleven feet at low tide, and 
eighteen or nineteen feet at high water. The steamers 
are therefore compelled to wait for tide, and enter 
the river only in day time. The pilots are noted for 
their attention and skill. The river of Demerara is 
navigable for ships about fifty miles above the town, 
and perhaps even higher; but as there are no plan- 
tations at a greater distance, no accurate survey has 



DEMERARA. 



55 



been taken. At 130 miles from its mouth are con- 
siderable cataracts, beyond which the Europeans hare 
not explored its course; but the Arrowauk Indians, 
who descend in large canoes, represent it as acces- 
sible above the cataracts to a much greater distance 
than the latter from the sea. 

The steamers lie off the capital, formerly Stabroek, 
but now called Georgetown, about a quarter of a 
mile from the principal landing-place. Shore-boats 
are employed in landing, and about half a dollar is 
the usual charge for a passenger and his luggage. 
Luggage is not required to be searched, as there are 
no duties charged thereon. 

Georgetown is on the east side and near the mouth 
of the river which gives name to the colony. The 
town is of an oblong form, about a quarter of a mile 
in breadth, and a mile in length; it stands on a low 
and level site, and the principal streets are perfectly 
straight, with carriage roads. The houses are of 
wood, two or three stories high, and raised on brick 
foundations. There is nothing in the public build- 
ings to merit description. It is deficient in good 
hotels; but there are some respectable boarding- 
houses, the charges in which are from three to five 
dollars per day, exclusive of wines. Rain-water is 
that which is in general use. 

In this colony, as well as others of the British 
possession, dollars are current, at 4s. 2d. each; 
British gold and silver are also current. There are 
two banks, brauches of the Colonial and British 
Guiana Banks. 

No passports are required for passengers, either on 
arriving or quitting the colony; but residents on 
leaving must take a pass from the Colonial Secretary. 



56 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



There are two theatres in Georgetown, the "Dutch" 
and the " Queen's." The performances are occa- 
sional, by both amateur and professional actors. 

There is a library, the subscription to which is 14 
dollars, 67 cents per annum, or 2 joes. 

The places of worship are numerous; they are of 
the Episcopalian, Scotch, and Lutheran Churches; 
the Roman Catholic, Reformed Dutch, Wesleyan 
Methodist, and the London Missionary Chapels. 

An entire regiment of the line, together with one 
or two detached companies of another regiment, 
whose head quarters are at Berbice, is generally in 
barracks at Georgetown. 

The Government consists of three bodies, viz.: 
the College of Electors, called Kiezers, or choosers, 
who are elected by the tax- payers for life, and who 
nominate the non-official members of the Court of 
Policy. This Court of Policy is the principal legis- 
lative court, and consists of five official, and five 
non-official members, the Governor being the presi- 
dent; and the Financial Representatives, six in num- 
ber, who are also directly elected for two years by 
the tax-payers, and who, joined to the Court of 
Policy, form the Combined Court, and regulate the 
finance of the Government. As these institutions 
are but little known in England, it may be as 
well to give a short description of them, as well as 
of the origin of the Financial Representatives. The 
College of Kiezers appears somewhat to resemble 
the electoral college in France. It is not itself the 
legislative body, but, as its name signifies, (the Col- 
lege of Kiezers being literally the College of Choos- 
ers,) it chooses or elects the legislative body. Yet 
the very small amount of its members, and the 



DEM ERA RA. 



57 



fact that the members of the College of Kiezers do 
not become members in right of any previously ascer- 
tained (< qualification/' in our English sense of the 
word; but are actually elected by the inhabitants at 
large, deprive it of its exact resemblance to the 
electoral colleges. 

The Court of Policy, anciently called also the 
Council, seems to have been nothing but an executive 
and administrative board, assisting the Governor in 
the discharge of his duties, and composed of the four 
chief servants of the Dutch West India Company 
and four inhabitants chosen by the College of Burgher 
Officers or Kiezers. The Court of Policy was after- 
wards made by the terms of the capitulation to the 
English in 1803, a local legislature, and seems to 
unite the functions, except as to the levying of taxes, 
of the English Houses of Lords and Commons, and 
of the Privy Council. 

The Financial Representatives resembled, in having 
the direct power of taxation in their hands, the Eng- 
lish House of Commons, but resembled it in that 
respect alone; for the power of making laws was not 
given to the Financial Representatives, whose au- 
thority was expressly limited to Cf the purpose only 
of raising in conjunction with the Governor and 
Court of Policy of the said colony, the colonial 
taxes, and of examining accounts." 

The first institution of trial by jury in Demerara, 
took place in 1818. 

As British Guiana is a conquered colony, it is 
subject to be governed by orders in council. 

Though situated under a vertical sun, British 
Guiana is more healthy than most of the West India 
islands, which probably arises from the greater equa- 



58 



THE "WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



lity of the temperature. The constant regularity of 
the trade-winds during the day, and of the land- 
breezes which succeed them in the evening, joined to 
the invariable length of the nights, with their re- 
freshing dews, render the heat far from excessive. 
By a series of thermometrical observations taken at 
the Royal Engineer's quarters in Georgetown, at 
6 a.m., 12 at noon, and 6 p.m., daily, from three 
thermometers of the best description, the mean heat 
during the day and throughout the year has no 
greater range than from 82° to 85°; consequently 
consumptive catarrhal affections, and other diseases 
incident on sudden or great variations of climate, or 
which are the results either of intense cold or of ex- 
cessive heat, are of very rare occurrence in Guiana. 
Nor must it be overlooked, that even the heat indi- 
cated by the degrees above given is materially abated 
by a constant breeze from the north-east, and which 
varies but slightly in strength. Malaria and mias- 
matic vapours, incident to all low flat countries, are 
the only bar to perfect salubrity; but these are ra- 
pidly yielding to the improvements in drainage, and 
to the greater attention among the medical profession 
to the pathology of the diseases arising from these 
causes. 

There is no winter here. The year is divided into 
two dry, and two rainy, seasons; part of December, 
January, part of February, and May, June, July, 
constitute the two wet seasons: the other months, 
the dry seasons. The thermometer averages from 
82° to 84° in the shade. The months of October 
and November are the most delightful in the year; 
the sky is cloudless, the heat moderate, and the ther- 
mometer at noon-tide scarcely higher than 80° Fahr. 



DEMERARA. 



59 



During the rainy season the oppressive weight of the 
atmosphere is tempered by northerly breezes; and in 
the months of September and November the breezes 
from the East and South-East, which have passed 
over a vast extent of the ocean, are invigorating, and 
refresh the air to such a degree, that during the 
night the thermometer has been known to fall to 
74° Fahr. The seasons do not materially affect the 
healthiness of the colony. The dews in the city are 
neither heavy nor dangerous. In the rivers, creeks, 
and in the uncultivated portion of the country, they 
are more copious and do not agree with European 
constitutions. 

Georgetown is amply supplied with good medical 
practitioners. Those in largest practice are Drs. 
Hutson and Alleyne, and Mr. D. Blair, surgeon; 
there are several others of decided respectability. 

Berbice is about 70 miles east, and the River Esse- 
quibo about 60 miles west, from Georgetown. 

There is steam communication between these places 
and Demerara once a fortnight, and sailing vessels 
pass to and fro almost daily. Cabin fares to Berbice 
by steamer 6 dollars, and 4 dollars back to Demerara; 
to Essequibo, 3 dollars both ways. 

The scenery in the interior, and especially up the 
Essequibo River, is most beautiful and romantic. 
This river is about 25 miles wide at its mouth; it is 
studded with islands, some of which are cultivated. 
Information respecting its course is equally obscure 
as of the Demerara river. The trees, of which it is 
said there are at least one hundred different sorts, 
cover the land at both sides of this majestic river. 
Their branches are crowded with birds of varied and 
beautiful plumage, and the whole bears the look of 



60 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



everlasting summer. " Delight/' says a distinguished 
traveller, " is but a poor word to express the feelings 
of a naturalist when he first sets foot within the 
virgin forests of South America. 55 

The soil, in general, is rich in the extreme, and 
produces all the variety of tropical productions in 
lavish abundance. 

An Agricultural and Commercial Society has re- 
cently been established in Georgetown, the leading 
objects of which, to quote from the prospectus, 
" shall be the improvement of the agriculture of the 
colony, and the encouragement of every branch of 
industry, manufacture, or trade, whereby the re- 
sources of the colony are likely to be developed and 
increased.' 5 His Excellency the Governor is patron 
of the society, which already boasts of a highly re- 
spectable list of members, both as regards rank and 
numbers. A munificent grant has been made to the 
society by the Legislature of premises, situated in 
the most central part of the city, which are immedi- 
ately to be fitted up as exchange-room, reading- room, 
museum, library, &c, &c. We look with much in- 
terest to these societies now becoming general among 
the British West India colonies. 



Population of Demerara and Essegiuibo, according to 
Census on 15th October, 1841. 



Males. 

39,364 



Total. 

77,928 



Females. 

38,564 



DEMERARA. 



51 



Schools and Scholars. 



Demerara. 


1840. 


1841. 


1842. 


Church of England 


2,167 .. 


2,197 .. 


.. 2,218 




1,914 .. 


2,098 


. . * 848 


Roman Catholics 






250 


Essequibo. 








Church Missionary Society . . 


274 .. 


.. 224 .. 


. . t ^0 


Wesleyan Missionary Society 


1,046 


.. 1,046 .. 


. . 298 




( Sunday. ) 




London Missionary Society . . 


1,803 .. 


.. 1,825 


.. 1,800 



Several miscellaneous Sunday Schools, for adults and boys and 
girls — numbers uncertain. 



Inwards. 

1840 .. 

1841 .. 

1842 .. 



Ships. 

567 
607 
496 



Tons. 
93,211 

98,815 
82,620 



Shipping. 

Men. Outwards. 



5,413 
5,506 
4,529 



1840 
1841 
1842 



Ships. 

583 
608 
493 



Tons. 

96,924 
99,013 
79,255 



Men. 
5,397 

5,396 
2,786 



Course of Exchange. 
Average of years 1840-41-42,— 44f 80 cents to the £ sterling. 

Wages for Labour. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

Domestic, per month. . £2 10s £2 10s £2 

Predial, per day 2s. Id Is. 6d. to 4s. 2d Is. 5d. 

Trades 4s. 2d 4s. 2d. to 6s. 3d 3s. 6d. 

Prices of Provisions. 







d. 




d. 




d. 


Wheaten Bread, per lb. 1840 


0 


10.. 1841 


0 


6. 


1842 0 


4 


Beef 


0 


10 „ 


0 


10. 


• „ o 


10 


Mutton ,, 


2 


1 


2 


1. 


• M 1 


4 


Pork „ 


1 


3 ,, 


1 


0. 


• n 0 


10 




0 


5 ,, 


0 


4. 


„ o 


2 


Coffee ,, 


1 


0 „ 


1 


5. 


• M 0 


8 


Tea ,, 


6 


2 


8 


4. 


. ,, 5 


4 


Sugar „ 


0 


5 


0 


8. 


• „ o 


4 



* Returns in three parishes defective, 
t Returns in two parishes defective. 



62 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



BERBICE. 

Total Population, according to Census taken 15th Oct. 1841, 

Males. Females. Total. 

10,427 9,790 20,217. 

Shipping. 

Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 1 Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

' 1840 .. 134 19,577 1,132 



1840 .. 136 18,940 1,114 

1841 128 17,402 1,033 
1842.. 95 14,397 815 



1841 152 20,825 1,218 
1842.. 85 13,566 730 



Value of Imports and Exports in the year 1840 : 

Imports. Exports. 

Deinerara £844,383 £1,555,664 

Berbice 144,004 332,063 

The amount of Slave Compensation paid to British Guiana 
was £4,297,117 10 6. 

Newspapers published in British Guiana : 

Guiana Times, at j Monday & » } Emery, Esq. 
Georgetown .... ( r naay . . $ J J ' ^ 

Royal Gazette, at i Tues.Th. & ) ,, Messrs. Bauon & Dallas, 
Georgetown . . . . \ Saturday. . £ established 1805. 

Guiana Herald, at ( G , ) ,, Dr. Dodgson, establish - 
Georgetown .... \ bame dayS S ed 1842. 

Berbice Gazette, atf Monday &>,, G. A. M'Kidd, Esq., 
New Amsterdam \ Thursday. . $ established 1842. 



( 63 ) 



JACMEL,--HAYTI, 

Is distant 720 miles from Grenada. This distance 
is accomplished in about three days. 

As the steamer calls merely for the exchange of 
mails and passengers, no delay is made, but she pro- 
ceeds at once to Jamaica. 

Hayti, or St. Domingo, was discovered by Colum- 
bus in 1492. It is next in size to Cuba, from which 
it is distant only twenty leagues. Placed between the 
18th and 20th degrees of north latitude, and from 
68° to 75° degrees west, it has a length of 360 miles 
from east to west, and a breadth varying from 60 to 
120 miles. Its circumference, measured by an even 
line, excluding its bays, is nearly a thousand miles. 
This island, so important for its situation and great 
natural advantages, is four times as large as Jamaica, 
and nearly equal in extent to Ireland. Jamaica lies 
westward about forty leagues; and Porto Rico twenty- 
two leagues eastward. On the north are the Bahama 
islands, at a distance of two or three days' sail; and 
southward, separated by 700 miles of ocean, is the 
great continent of South America. 

Columbus gave it the name of Hispaniola, and the 
name of San Domingo (in Spanish, Sunday), to a 
city he established in 1494, by which name the whole 
island, in process of time, came to be called; it has 
now resumed its original name of Hayti. The island 
is very rich in tropical products; the western side is 
remarkable for its fertility; and though the eastern 
side is by no means equal to the western, we are in- 



64 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



formed upon respectable authority, that it contains 
certain districts which alone are capable of producing 
more sugar, and other valuable commodities, than all 
the British West Indian isles. 

The plains are not healthy for Europeans ; the ther- 
mometer there rises as high as 99°, but the country 
is continually refreshed by breezes and rains, and its 
salubrity is increased by the beautiful variety of its 
surface. There are three principal chains of moun- 
tains. The whole of these are described as fertile 
and susceptible of cultivation, even to their summits. 
Their highest elevations are about 6,000 feet above 
the level of the sea, and these are covered with forests 
of mahogany, brazil-wood, palms, elms, oaks, pines, 
iron-wood, cedar, ebony, &c. The island is said to 
have its mines of gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, 
precious stones, and crystals. Its plains nourish 
vast herds of cattle, equal in every respect to those 
of Europe; and horses are reared in sufficient num- 
bers to supply all the West Indies. The French are 
therefore justified in designating this magnificent is- 
land La Heine des Antilles. 

"It would be difficult," remarks Mr. Candler, " to 
a person not acquainted with mountain scenery in the 
tropics, to form a conception of the grandeur and 
loveliness of nature, as exhibited in these wonderful 
hills (the journey from Port au Prince to Jacmel). 
Jamaica and Martinique have scenes surpassing fable, 
but Hayti has prospects more beautiful, and is richer 
still. At many points everything but high hills and 
deep valleys is shut out from view. The hills in 
many places, to a considerable extent, being covered 
with timber trees, the growth perhaps of centuries, 
interspersed with the graceful cabbage palm, — the 



JACMEL HAYTT. 



65 



tree of liberty, — which is cultivated and fostered as 
the emblem of national freedom: the valleys and 
low rising ground being sprinkled with neat well- 
fenced cottages, green with Indian corn and the 
broad -leafed banana, or covered with numerous 
patches of the white flowering coffee. The people 
of Hayti, if they display no other refinement, shew 
admirable taste in the choice of place and situation 
to live in: some of the sweetest spots in the crea- 
tion are covered with their dwellings, where to all 
appearance at least, they live a peaceful, contented, 
and happy life. Were such a land as this colonized 
by Europeans, we should hear no end of its praise. 

The present race of Haytians have lately been 
described by a traveller, as a well-formed and robust 
people; seldom corpulent, but never thin; active 
in make, and vigorous in body. Their eyes are 
fine, their countenances quick and intelligent, and 
their teeth always well set, regular, and beautifully 
white. Their upright athletic make, and habitual 
consciousness of freedom, reminds the West Indian 
of the Jamaica Maroon. There is the same mien, 
the same gait, the same impression of liberty. The 
dress of this people is, in general, lively and grace- 
ful, and a general courtesy and decency prevail 
among all classes. The philanthropic Robert Owen, 
on his passage to Mexico a few years ago, touched 
at Jacmel, which he thus notices: — " It was a reli- 
gious holiday, — everything was new to me, and 
more new, in consequence of its being the first free 
coloured population I had ever seen. It was better 
dressed, cleaner, more orderly, and more mild and 
polite in its demeanor the one to the other, than any 
working or trading people I had ever seen in any 

F 



66 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



civilized country. There was more urbanity in the 
expression of countenance than I had witnessed in 
Europe and America." 

Confidence in the common people of Hayti is 
rarely or never misplaced. Strangers may travel in 
every part of the country, night and day, without 
danger of being robbed or molested; and specie is 
safely sent from one part of the island to the other 
in bags only, in charge of a muleteer without guard. 

The population of Hayti may be estimated at 
850,000 souls. 

The constitution of Hayti, as now embodied in 
the statutes of the island, was finally modified in 
1816. The government of the republic is con- 
fided to a President, chosen for life, who has power 
to nominate his successor at death, reserving to the 
senate the right, if they see fit, to reject the no- 
mination, and choose any other citizen they may 
prefer. The legislative power is vested in three 
branches, which must all concur in passing the 
laws: 1st. The president, with whom all the laws 
originate: 2nd. The senate, chosen for nine years, 
who are selected from lists presented by the presi- 
dent to the House of Assembly for its choice: 3rd. 
The House of Representatives, chosen for five years 
by free election of the people assembled in their 
respective communes; who are professedly and in 
theory an independent body, at liberty to call in 
question the management of public affairs, and to 
address the president on any occasion, as often as 
they will. The salary of the president is 40,000 
Haytien dollars per annum, with an extra salary of 
30,000 dollars when engaged in any one year in tra- 
velling through the island on a tour of inspection 



J ACM EL — HAYTI. 



for the public good. Each senator has a salary paid 
by the state of 133 dollars per month; and each 
representative receives 200 dollars per month during 
the session of Congress. The Havtien dollar, at 
the present rate of exchange, is Is. 8d. The salary 
of the president, therefore, in sterling money, is 
£3,333; and, when travelling, £2,500 per annum 
in addition: the salary of a senator is £133 per 
annum; and that of a representative to the House 
of Assembly, during a session of three months, 
about £50. The president of Hayti, being governor 
for life, generalissimo of the forces, head of the 
church, and fountain of honour and rewards, is 
thus a sovereign in all but the name. 

The town of Jacmel stands at the head of a very 
fine bay, it consists of two parts; the lower town, 
built along the shore at the bottom of the bay where 
the shipping lies, and where business is carried on; 
and the upper town, built on a hill immediately be- 
hind the lower. The view of the port, with its 
white buildings and terrace-like form, is very striking 
from the water. The streets, however, are poor and 
ill-paved, and there are not many good houses; the 
best building in the place belongs to the president, 

I who is seldom there, and which stands empty. The 
inhabitants are estimated at from 6,000 to 7,000. 
There is a good market place; a spacious and rather 
handsome parish church, and a strong prison. The 
public school of Jacmel is conducted on the monitorial 
system, under the care of an accomplished black man, 
who has about 70 scholars. There are also three private 
schools, where about 120 boys and girls are educated. 

The river Gauche, with its many mouths, empties 
itself into the bav west of the town. 

f 2 



68 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Landing is effected by the steamer's boat. The 
steamer makes no delay, as she merely exchanges 
mails and passengers. Passengers' luggage must 
pass through the Custom House, but this is little 
else than a formality, and occasions very little 
trouble. 

Lodging-houses are of an inferior description, 
and of hotels there is not one; but persons arriving 
generally bring letters of introduction to residents 
which procure for them a hospitable reception. 

No passport is required on arriving, but a compli- 
mentary visit is expected to be paid to the governor : 
natives are necessitated to procure passports on leav- 
ing the island. 

One or two regiments of regular troops and a Guard 
National of about 600 men are generally at Jacmel. 

Port au Prince, as well as Jacmel, is indifferently 
supplied with medical practitioners — the latter place 
has been pointed out as affording a good opening for 
a young medical man. 

Jacmel is considered very healthy. Communica- 
tion with the interior is made solely on horseback, 
as the roads will not admit wheel carriages. The 
journey to Port au Prince, 75 miles, is made in a 
day and a half; horses may be hired for the journey 
at 30s. each; baggage animals, and guides at the 
same rate. Aux Cayes, where several English mer- 
chants reside, is three days journey from Jacmel. 



( 69 ) 




DURO DE CORTICE FRUTUS QUAM DULCIS. 



JAMAICA. 

The distance from Jacmel to Kingston, Jamaica, is 
255 miles. 

This island, called by the natives, Xaymaca, which 
signifies a country abounding in springs, was dis- 
covered by Columbus on the 3rd of May, 1494. It 
is somewhat of an oval shape, about 160 miles long 
and 45 miles broad, and contains 4,000,000 of acres. 
Almost any temperature can be obtained from 80° at 
Kingston, to 42° on the summit of the mountain 
range. The air in the country is very light and en- 
livening, producing great cheerfulness and buoyancy 
of spirits. The Blue Mountains are an elevated ridge 
towering in some places to nearly 8,000 feet above 
the level of the sea, and running longitudinally 
through the island east and west. 

The Blue Mountains are sometimes in view ere we 



70 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



enter Kingston harbour. The scenery of this mag- 
nificent island is truly delightful. — The predominant 
features of the landscape are grandeur and sublimity. 
"When I first approached the south side of the 
island by sea/' writes an enthusiastic traveller, "and 
beheld from afar such of the stupendous and soaring 
ridges of the Blue Mountains, as the clouds here and 
there disclosed, the imagination was filled with admi- 
ration and wonder. Yet the sensation which I felt 
was allied rather to terror than delight. Though 
the prospect before me was, in the highest degree, 
magnificent, it seemed a scene of magnificent desola- 
tion. The abrupt precipice and inaccessible cliff, 
had more the aspect of a chaos than a creation; or, 
rather, seemed to exhibit the effects of some dreadful 
convulsion, which laid nature in ruins. Appearances, 
however, improved as we approached; for, amidst 
ten thousand bold features, too hard to be softened 
by culture, many a spot was soon discovered where 
the hand of industry had awakened life and fertility. 
With these pleasing intermixtures, the flowing line 
of the lower range of mountains (which now became 
visible, crowned with woods of majestic growth) com- 
bined to soften and relieve the rude solemnity of the 
loftier eminences; until at length the Savannas at 
the bottom met the sight. These are vast plains, 
clothed chiefly with extensive cane-fields; displaying 
in all the pride of cultivation, the verdure of Spring, 
blended with the exuberance of xlutumn; and they 
are bounded only by the ocean, on whose bosom a 
new and ever-moving picture strikes the eye; for in- 
numerable vessels are discovered in various directions, 
some crowding into, and others bearing away from, 
the bays and harbours with which the coast is every- 
where indented." 



JAMAICA. 



"1 



" The unimaginable luxuriance/' remarks another 
writer, "of the herbage, the singular exotic appear- 
ance of all around, the green-house-like feel and 
temperature of the atmosphere, and the fresh flush 
of vegetable fragrance wafted from the shore, are all 
calculated to regale the senses, exhilarate the spirits, 
and diffuse through the soul a strange delirium of 
buoyant hope and joy. Jamaica, in a word, may 
be reckoned among the most romantic and highly- 
diversified countries in the world; uniting the rich 
magnificent scenery with waving forests, never-failing 
streams, and constant verdure can present, heightened 
by a pure atmosphere, and the glowing tints of a 
tropical sun. 

The rivers, including springs and rivulets, have 
been estimated at upwards of 200 in number: about 
40 are of the largest class. From the mountainous 
nature of the country, and the huge masses of rock 
that frequently obstruct their course, they are often 
precipitous, and exhibit numerous and beautiful cas- 
cades, now bursting headlong in the foam and thun- 
der of a cataract. 

The southern shores of Jamaica, diversified as 
they are with hill and dale, timber and cultivation, 
and the Blue Mountains for a back ground, afford a 
delightful coup cFceil, though usually considered far 
inferior to the north side of the island. But the 
prospect on rounding the point, and entering the 
harbour of Port- Royal, is truly superb. 

On the south side of the island, the sea-breeze 
from the south-eastward comes on at nine or ten in 
the morning, and gradually increases until noon, 
when it is strongest; at two or three in the afternoon 
its force diminishes, and in general entirely ceases 



72 THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 

by five or six o'clock. About eight in the evening 
the land-breeze begins; this breeze extends to the 
distance of four leagues to the southward of the 
island. It increases until midnight, and ceases at 
about seven in the morning. These breezes render 
the temperature of Jamaica, which would be other- 
wise excessively hot and unfavourable to Europeans, 
tolerable ; in the high grounds it is temperate, pure, 
and cooling. 

Dews are abundant. More rain falls on the north 
than on the south side of the island. On an average 
of five years it rained 116 days; the fall is 50 
inches. The difference of temperature between the 
north and south sides of the island amounts to 5° 
during the whole year, and in the first three months 
in the year from 8° to 10°. 

By the treaty of 1670 the island of Jamaica was 
formally ceded by Spain to England. In 1678 an 
attempt was made by Charles II. to govern this is- 
land by laws passed in the Privy Council. The 
scheme is described by Mr. Edwards in the following 
words, — cc A body of laws was prepared by the 
Privy Council of England, among the rest a bill 
for settling a perpetual revenue on the Crown, which 
the Earl of Carlisle was directed to offer to the 
Assembly, requiring them to adopt the whole code 
without amendment or alteration. In future, the 
heads of all bills (except money bills) were to be 
suggested, in the first instance, by the Governor 
and Council, and transmitted to his Majesty to be 
approved or rejected at home; on obtaining the 
royal confirmation, they were to be returned under 
the great seal in the shape of laws, and passed by 
the General Assembly, which was to be convened 



JAMAICA. 



73 



for no other purpose than that and voting the sup- 
plies; unless in consequence of special orders from 
England." The success of the experiment upon 
Barbadoes (p. 25), had probably stimulated the 
King and his Ministers to this attempt, which in 
grossness, indeed, exceeded the former. The people 
of Jamaica, however, possessed the advantages of 
having an existing assembly, — their titles to their 
lands were not impeached, — and there had already 
begun a reaction in the minds of the English people, 
who were no longer so eager to please royalty at the 
expense of all that was just and honest, as they had 
been when Charles I. returned among them. Thus 
assisted, the colonists were successful at this time in 
their resistance. However, the great object in view, 
that of obtaining a perpetual revenue from Jamaica, 
was pertinaciously followed by the successive minis- 
tries from the second Charles to the first George; 
and at length, in 1/28, a compromise was effected. 
The Assembly consented upon certain conditions to 
settle on the Crown a standing irrevocable revenue of 
£8,000 a year. The conditions were, 1st. That the 
quit rents arising within the island (then estimated 
at £1,460 per annum) should constitute part of such 
revenue; the 2nd was, That the body of their laws, 
the confirmation of which had been suspended by 
previous ministries in order to compel submission to 
the Home Government, should receive the royal 
assent; and 3rd. That such laws and statutes of 
England as had been at any time esteemed, intro- 
duced, used, or received as laws in this island, should 
be and continue the laws of Jamaica for ever. 

The Governor, the Chief Justice, the Attorney- 
General, the Bishop, the Commander of the Forces, 



74 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



and the Chancellor, are all members of the Council, 
ex officio, and the others are selected from the most 
respectable and opulent of the inhabitants. They 
are twelve in number, and are addressed by the title 
of honorable. The Assembly consists of 4/ mem- 
bers, being two representatives to each parish, and 
an additional one to the towns of Spanish Town, 
Kingston, and Porc-Koyal. Its duration is seven 
years. The qualification of a representative is the 
possession of a freehold of £300 per annum in any 
part of the island, or a real and personal estate of 
£3,000. One elector must possess a freehold estate 
in the parish in which he votes of the value of £6 
sterling, or at a rent charge of £30 sterling, re- 
corded in the island secretary's office for twelve 
calendar months, and the right of voting thereon 
entered in the parish books, in the office of the 
clerk of the vestry, or clerk of the common council, 
six calendar months. He must be twenty-one years 
of age; and actually pay taxes to the amount of £3 
sterling per annum. His specific place of abode 
must also be registered. He must take an oath as 
to his actual possession of the property; present a 
rent receipt from his landlord, and pay his taxes up 
to the term of his claiming to vote, and in continuity 
afterwards, as a condition of his continued privilege. 

The chief justice is nominated by the Govern- 
ment of England. The present possessor of this 
high office is his honour Sir Joshua Rowe. He is 
associated with two duly qualified assistants, the 
Hons. W. C. M'Dougaf and W. Stevenson. They 
hold their offices at the pleasure of the Queen in 
council, and have each a patent of office under the 
great seal of the island, as is the case with the 



JAMAICA. 



75 



judges and principal officers of all the other courts, 
who are removable only by the sanction of the 
Queen in council. Their salaries are paid by the 
island, and are as follow: — The chief justice, £4,000 
per annum, and each of his associates about £2,000. 
The whole annual cost for the judicial establishment 
is £23,476. 

The annual revenue of Jamaica, including the 
local taxes of the different counties and parish ves- 
tries, is estimated at £600,000. It sustains its own 
government, and its ecclesiastical, naval and military 
establishments, (the salaries of the bishop and arch- 
deacon excepted,) besides yielding an annual revenue 
to the Crown of £10,000. 

The island is divided into three counties, Mid- 
dlesex, Surrey, and Cornwall; and these are sub- 
divided into twenty-three parishes. It contains six 
towns and twenty seven villages, independently of 
those which have been recently established by the 
peasantry. 

Port-Royal harbour is formed by an inlet of the 
sea, between the main-land and a long sand-bank, 
called the Palisades. At the point of this sand-bank 
stands Port-Royal, the principal naval station in the 
West Indies. 

The steamer goes right up to the Royal Mail Com- 
pany's wharf at Kingston. Passengers get on shore 
directly from the ship to the wharf; or, if by shore- 
boats, for 6d. or Is. each passenger, according to 
distance and luggage. This latter is examined at 
the wharf by the custom-house officers, who in- 
variably show every consideration. Articles intro- 
duced as merchandize \ and of British manufacturej 
pay an inland duty of 4 per Cent. 



76 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Kingston is a large town, lying on a slope, with 
straight and moderately wide streets, but unpaved 
and dirty; the sand is many inches deep, and filth 
is allowed to remain a long time in the streets. 
Many houses are, however, extremely good and com- 
fortable; they are generally of two stories, with ve- 
randahs above and below. 

The English and Scotch churches are elegant 
buildings; the former is built on a lovely spot com- 
manding a splendid view of the city, the plains 
around, the amphitheatre of mountains, and the 
noble harbour of Port-Royal. At the top of the de- 
clivity on which Kingston is built, are the barracks, 
called Up Park Camp. 

The money is British sterling, as in England. All 
sorts of monies pass current. There are three banks, 
the Colonial, the Jamaica, and the Planters; all of 
first character and respectability. 

Hotels and lodging-houses are both numerous and 
respectable; of the latter, Mrs. Edwards's, Lower 
King-street, is to be recommended. The charge of 
living is generally about 8s. per day, or 40s. per 
week, — wines extra. 

All the conveniences for travelling are to be had in 
Kingston. Gigs, phaetons, saddle-horses, and mules, 
can be hired at about the following terms: 

Gigs, for morning or evening drives 8s. 

„ for the day about 20s. 

Phseton and pair, morning or evening 20*. 

,, for the day 48s. 

Saddle-horses per day 16s. 



The city abounds with livery stables. 

Passports are only needed when going to foreign 



JAMAICA. 



77 



countries. The cost of obtaining one is 12s. to 
1 4s. ; the party must attend personally on the dif- 
ferent consuls. 

Kingston has almost daily communication, by 
small schooners, with the several other ports round 
the island. In these there is generally fair accom- 
modation for six to eight passengers. 

The places of worship are almost of every denomi- 
nation and creed. There are some first-rate schools, 
and instruction is given in several languages. 

The two theatres in Kingston are not much encou- 
raged. Occasionally a company of Italians come 
from the Havana and give operas for a couple of 
months. 

The merchants have their commercial and reading 
rooms, which are regularly supplied with English, 
American, and other foreign and West Indian pa- 
pers, periodicals, &c. These rooms are open from 
7 a.m. to 5 p.m.; they are large and airy, and are 
in connexion with one of the hotels, being under the 
same roof. 

In the upper part of the town there is also an 
extensive and respectable club-house, or Athenaeum, 
to which is attached a surperb library, billiard 
rooms, &c. 

The regular troops are thus in general appor- 
tioned : — 

In Kingston . . 150 
Newcastle . . . 700, distant 15 miles. 
At Up Park Camp. 500 „ 2 miles. 
Port-Royal . . 300. 
There are usually one or two ships of war at Port- 
Royal, and a Government steamer. 

The stranger will see many things worthy of notice 



78 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



in Jamaica. All the natural productions are different 
to those of Europe. The pimento or Jamaica pepper- 
tree, which produces the " all-spice," — -of lofty grey 
trunk, and dark, polished, fragrant leaf, attains 
considerable size, — its green foliage often relieved by 
its delicate white blossom. The spice is a small 
berry which grows in bunches, and when ripe is like 
the elderberry in size and colour. Even the leaves 
of this lovely tree when pressed emit a strong aro- 
matic odour. When swept by the breeze they shed 
their spicy fragrance through the air, imparting a 
charm to nature truly indescribable. The lignum- 
vitee, profusely adorned with small blue blossoms; 
the date palm, much exceeding the cocoa-nut tree 
in the luxuriance of its branches, and many delicate 
kinds of acacia. The mango trees may be said to 
cover the country, and, during the four summer 
months, afford abundance of delicious food to man, 
mules, horses, cows, and pigs. All animals seem 
equally fond of this fruit. Altogether there are fifty 
varieties of excellent timber, available to the archi- 
tect, the millwright, and the cabinet-maker. The 
birds also are numerous, beautiful and sweet-voiced. 
The turkey-buzzard is here protected from the fowler, 
because of its great use in clearing carrion away, and 
other sorts of unhealthy garbage- 

The other objects of interest are the Botanic 
Gardens at Bath, distant by the Port Road 48 miles,; 
the Falls, distant about 8 miles on the Windward 
Road; two copper mines, yet in their infancy, in 
the Port-Boyal mountains; the Silk Company's 
Works; the Blue Mountain Peak, distant 30 miles, 
the access to which is not now difficult for riding. 
This Peak is about 8,000 feet above the level of the 



JAMAICA. 



79 



sea. The scenery is most romantic through these 
rides, and the views extensive and magnificent. 

About 36 miles from Spanish Town, in the parish 
of St. Ann, are the works of the Jamaica Silk Com- 
pany. This company was incorporated by a local 
act, dated July, 1841. They purchased 378 acres 
of John Wilson Davis, Esq., on which they have 
erected two iron buildings and two wooden nouses, 
and planted upwards of two hundred acres with mul- 
berry trees. The place is called Metcalfe Ville, after 
their late much-esteemed governor Sir C. Metcalfe. 
The soil is a red marl, impregnated with iron, and 
suits the mulberry trees extremely well, and the cli- 
mate in that part of the island is most congenial, the 
thermometer ranging from 56° to 75° F. In this cli- 
mate the mulberries are evergreen, and are sufficiently 
advanced in 1 2 months to produce food for the worms ; 
in the temperate zones the trees generally take five 
years to come to the same perfection. They are not 
allowed to grow into large trees, but are cut down 
after attaining a certain height, and then spring up 
afresh from many stems. One of the iron buildings 
is 225 feet long by 68 feet wide, and 35 feet high. 
It is furnished with railways and carriages for the 
conveyance of the food to the height of the shelves 
where the insects are placed: this is the Cocoonery. 
Another of the iron buildings, called the Filature, is 
110 feet by 50, in which is the reeling apparatus, 
worked by steam. As silk-worm's eggs require from 
six to eight months to mature before they hatch, it 
has been found necessary in this climate to give the 
eggs an artificial winter, otherwise they would dwindle 
and die. This artificial winter is obtained by the 
eggs being put into jars, and these into charcoal, and 



so 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



placed in an ice-house. The worms can thus be taken 
out according to the time the animal requires for ma- 
turity, and the food is always ready for its support. 
But Mr. S. Whitmarsh, the founder and manager of 
the company, writes that he has succeeded in cc Creo- 
lizing" the silk-worms ; as he calls it; and as this is 
of rare occurrence, we give the account in his own 
words: — "On the morning of 29th April, 1843, as 
I was examining a cloth of eggs just about to be laid 
away till the next season, I discovered that the eggs 
of one ( miller' had hatched, — the others remain 
dormant to this day, now nearly a year. I fed 
the live ones carefully, but out of 450 cocoons ob- 
tained only one pair of e millers' to reproduce in ten 
days; these again, though fed carefully, dwindled 
away till all but one pair died, evidently from weak- 
ness. I persevered, however, watching the whole 
with great interest. For the third time, I procured 
but one pair from 450, but this pair was decidedly 
stronger than the former ones. The fourth time 
seven pairs were saved; and from that time they 
have been gradually improving, till now the eighth 
generation are the finest and best worms I have ever 
seen; the cocoons cannot be equalled. I have by 
crossing obtained the different varieties, all bat one 
producing cocoons of the most brilliant whiteness. 
India and China have ten-day varieties, but they are 
so small, and yield so little silk, that they are not 
worth notice; but those of mine are superior to any 
of the annual varieties, and will, no doubt, improve 
by careful cultivation." 

A few samples of the silk spun at this place, 
were brought to London by Mr. Whitmarsh, and 
submitted to some of the best judges of the article; 



JAMAICA. 



81 



and before it was known from whence it was brought, 
they pronounced it to be first-rate silk, and then 
worth in the market from 22s. to 32s. per pound. 
These samples were wound by hand, and before the 
steam machinery was erected. 

The black and coloured work people seem to like 
the occupation very well; and the Company have 
distributed to all that wished them, mulberry cut- 
tings, to encourage the peasantry themselves to 
cultivate the worm. 

We have been desirous of giving full particulars 
of this very interesting company, for no doubt what 
has been accomplished in Jamaica can also be done 
in other of the West India colonies. The manufac- 
ture of silk seems to be one of the many available 
resources of these countries, and will afford profit- 
able employment for a numerous class of coloured 
work-people, who are not adapted to field labour. 
It is to be hoped that the Jamaica Silk Company 
will meet the success it deserves, and that other 
islands will be stimulated to similar exertions, in the 
production of an article of such extended use and 
unlimited consumption. 

In October, 1843, a General Agricultural Associa- 
tion was formed, of which Her Majesty has since 
become the patroness. The objects of this society 
are stated to be, to publish information contained in 
agricultural and other scientific works, — to have ex- 
periments in agriculture tried, — to improve the con- 
dition and promote the education of the peasantry, 
— to improve the veterinary art, — and to correspond 
with other societies. The Rev. Dr. Stewart is the 
Hon. Secretary. 

The consuls resident in Kingston are, Colonel 



82 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



R. M. Harrison, for the United States; J, L. 
Dugusnay, Esq., for Spain; Don J. F. Martin, for 
New Grenada, Colombia, and Mexico. 

R. Currie, Esq., is the agent to the Royal Mail 
Steam Packet Company. 

Baptisms. Marnages. Burials, 

1840 .... 6,530 2,919 ........ 1,506 

1841 .... 5,823 2,315 1,691 

1842 .... 4,817 1,535 1,643 

Militia. 

Infantry. Cavalry. 

1840 .. 9,035 554 

1841 9,066 546 

1842 8,601 572 

Scholars, (sexes not distinguished.) 

1840. 1541. 

Church of England. . 6,026 6,655 

Wesleyan Methodists 2,741 2,541 

Baptist 2,051 

United Brethren 1,428 . . .... 

London Missionary Society 480 651 

Scotch 1,924 

Jamaica Missionary Presbytery. .. . 451 

Mico Charity 2,513 



15,101 12,360 
Shipping. 

Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840.. 843 118,237 7,206 | 1840.. 687 93,879 5,774 
1842.. 765 126,593 7,194 j 1842.. 738 118,665 5,830 
No returns for 1841. 

Wages of Labourers. 

1840. 1841. 1S42. 

Domestic, per week. . 10s. to 16s. . . 10s. to 16s. . . 7s. to 16s. 
Predial, per day. . Is. 6d. to 2s. 6d. . Is. 6d. to 2s. 6d. . . . Is. 6d. 
Trades 3s. to 4s. 6d 3s. to 4s. 6d, 4s. 6d. 



JAMAICA. 



83 



Prices of Provisions. 





s. d. 




d. 




d, 


\YheatenBread,prl7ozs. 1840 0 U 


.1841 0 


44 


1S42 0 


4* 




.. „ 0 6 


„ o 


6 


„ o 


6 




„ 13 


„ 1 


3 


„ 1 


3 


Pork 


.. ,,0 9 


„ o 


9 


„ o 


9 




.. ,,0 6 


1 


6 


„ o 


6 




.. „ 2 0 


„ 2 


0 


„ 1 


6 


Tea, ,, 


. . „ 8 0 


„ 8 


0 


8 


0 




.. „ 0 9 


o 


9 


o 


44 



Amount of Paper Currency at close of 1842. 

Island Checks £40,000 0 0 

Colonial Bank Notes . . 80,247 9 0 

Jamaica ditto 84,887 0 0 

Planters' ditto 62,466 7 0 



£267,600 16 0 



Declared value of Imports and Exports in 1840 was — 
Imports. . £2,183,917. Exports. . £2,208,985. 

The proportion of Compensation, paid under the Emanci- 
pation Act — £6,161,927 5s. 10d., sterling. 

The following Newspapers are published in Jamaica. 

) by J. O. Clerk, established 
S 1843. 

Jordan and Osborn, es- 
$ tablished 1838. 

}by J. Lunan, established 
S 1832. 

\,, O. Shannon, established 
S 1779. 

Middlesex Gazette, J YVednesd. } ,, Judah and Nelme, esta- 
at Spanish Town { & Saturday 5 blished 1843, 

G 2 



Jamaica Times, at ( ^ 
Kingston \ ^ 

Morning Journal, f -p.., 
at ditto I Dltt0 

Jamaica Despatch, $ j\ ] 
at Kingston . . . . ( 

Royal Gazette, at S niffn 
ditto ( umo 



84 THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 

Cornwall Courier, i w ) Executors of Win. Dyer, 

at Falmouth. . . . \ ™ ednesd * $ established 1822. 

Falmouth Post, at * Wednesd. J. CasteUo, estabhshed 

ditto ( & Saturday \ 1835. 

Baptist Herald, at < Weiiegd . established 

ditto ( J 1« 40 - 

Cornwall Chronicle,) WedDesd. } A. Holmes, estabhshed 

at Montego Bay. \ & Saturday S 1781. 



( 85 ) 




HAVANA. 

The island of Cuba, of which Havana is the capi- 
tal, is situated between 74 c and 85 c W. long., and 
19° and 23° N. lat. The form of the island is ex- 
ceedingly irregular, approaching that of a long narrow 
crescent, the convex portion of which looks towards 
the north. It is the most westerly of the West 
India islands, and compared with the Archipelago, 
has decidedly the greatest superficial extent of terri- 
tory. Lying in the mouth of the Gulf of Mexico, 
it leaves two spacious entrances; one of which, be- 
tween the most northerly part of the island and the 
southerly point of Florida, is 32 leagues wide; and 
the other, between the most southerly point of Cuba 
and northerly of Yucatan, is 38 leagues. From St, 



86 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Domingo it is distant 14 leagues, and from the most 
southerly of the Bahama islands the distance is 1 5 
leagues. Its greatest length, in a straight line from 
E. to W., is 572 miles. The superficial or territo- 
rial extent is 31,468 square miles. The narrow form 
of the island, and the cordillera of mountains which 
divides it into two unequal sections throughout its 
whole length, leaves a very limited course for its 
rivers and streams, more especially those that belong 
to the northern side. In the rainy season they be- 
come torrents, but during the rest of the year they 
are nearly dried up. 

The distance from Kingston, Jamaica, to Havana, 
is 740 miles. The course of the steamer is south 
of Jamaica and of Cuba, round Cape Antonio. 
Cape Corrientes is also passed, and has sometimes 
been mistaken for Cape Antonio, which is more to 
the westward. 

The first sight of the Havana from the entrance 
of the harbour is exceedingly cheerful and pic- 
turesque. In the back ground the gigantic palm 
trees seem to overlook the city, and to form for it a 
magnificent frame-work of the richest verdure; while 
on the other sides the panorama is completed by the 
animated harbour within, covered with the flags of 
every nation, the rocky eminence at the entrance, 
and the formidable fortifications by which the whole 
are protected. The most agreeable land view which 
can be had of the city is perhaps to be found from 
the hill called the Indio, on the road between Regla 
and Guanabacoa on the other side of the harbour. 
The harbour is one of the best in the world, being 
deep enough for vessels of the largest class, and 
sufficiently capacious to accommodate a thousand 



HAVANA. 



87 



ships. The entrance is by a channel three-quarters 
of a mile long, but so narrow that only a single 
vessel can enter at once, and fortified through the 
whole distance with platforms, works, and artillery. 
The mouth of this channel is secured by two strong 
castles. That on the eastern side, called the Morro 
Castle, is built in the form of a triangle, fortified 
with bastions, and mounted with forty pieces of can- 
non, almost level with the water. On the opposite 
side of the channel is another strong fort, called the 
Puntal, connected with the town, to the north. 
The city is situated on the western side of the har- 
bour, and is surrounded by ramparts, bastions, and 
ditches. Besides these fortifications it is surmounted 
with works, all of them furnished with artillery, 
even to profusion. A square citadel (El Fuerte) 
stands at the N.E. corner of the town: this work 
has, also, heavy cannon; aud here the treasures of 
the government are deposited. 

In 1672, during the war with Spain, the English 
under Lord Albemarle laid siege to Havana, and 
took it after a desperate assault. On the 6th of 
June of that year, the British squadron, counting 
250 vessels of all sizes, appeared off the coast. 
The Spaniards had a large fleet of ships of war in 
the harbour, had mounted their fortresses with 
heavy guns, and made all necessary warlike prepa- 
rations. They had in the forts and city of regular 
troops and militia, 27,610 men under arms. The 
priests and women were sent out of the city, and 
vast preparations were made to stand a siege by 
laying in ample supplies of provisions. They sunk 
three ships in the harbour's mouth to prevent the 
entrance of the British fleet, and their fortresses 



88 



THE "WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



were defended by men of great courage and valour. 
The British land forces numbered 14,041 men of all 
arms ; their loss was very considerable both by the 
climate and from the desperate defence of the enemy. 
The Cabanas soon fell into the hands of the English, 
who approached from the land side, having landed 
the troops to the east of Havana. But it was not 
until after 44 days of unwearied exertion, with a 
loss to the Spaniards of upwards of 1000 men, that 
the Morro was taken. With the Morro, 304 pieces 
of cannon, 1 1 mortars, and a large supply of small 
arms and ammunition, fell into the hands of the 
English. Still, however, the Spaniards bravely de- 
fended the city, but the English, who now could 
turn their own cannon against them, demolished all 
their fortifications, and after some slight delay in 
negotiation, the city of Havana finally was taken 
possession of. It was just two months and eight 
days from the date of the arrival of the expedition 
to the day that the British took possession of the 
city. With the capital there was given up the whole 
territory annexed to it,— extending 180 miles to the 
westward; so that this conquest was the most con- 
siderable, and in its consequences the most decisive, 
of all that had taken place throughout the course of 
the war. It had besides all the effect of a naval 
victory. Nine ships of the line fell into the hands 
of the conquerors; three had been sunk in the har- 
bour; and two, far advanced on the stocks, were 
destroyed. The loss to the Spaniards in ships of 
war, merchant ships, money, tobacco, and other 
articles of value, was estimated at £3,000,000 ster- 
ling. On the return of peace in 1763, Havana was 
restored to the Spaniards. The keys of the city 



HAVANA. 



were formally delivered up to the Conde de Ricla, 
on whom the government had been conferred on the 
7th of July in that year, and the English garrison 
was embarked for Europe. 

In the city the streets are in general so narrow, 
that except where one crosses another, it is with 
difficulty that the peculiar carriage of the country, 
the volante, with its long shafts and enormous pair 
of wheels, can be made to turn; but in the suburbs, 
the streets are better laid out and more spacious. 
The suburbs now cover more ground and contain a 
larger population than the city itself. Latterly the 
regulations of the police, and the cleanliness of all 
parts of the town, have much improved. The w T harves 
of the Havana, at which merchant ships discharge, 
are large and serviceable. The ships lie while dis- 
charging with their stems and sterns to the shore; 
and in that way 36 ships of the largest class, and 
an equal number of coasters have frequently lain 
there alongside each other. 

Passengers are landed by shore-boats; the steamer 
lies at about a mile from the shore. The usual 
charge is J to 1 dollar, according to the weather; an 
agreement should be first made with the boatmen. 

Luggage must be sent to the custom-house, and 
passengers attend either personally, or send their 
keys to the custom-house officers. These officers 
are particularly sharp at detecting anything new, on 
which duty should be charged. 

No passengers can land unless they have passports 
and fiadors; and persons having neglected to procure 
them, have not only been refused permission to land, 
but have been kept on board the ship during her stay, 
and sent back in the same ship in which they came. 



90 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



On leaving, parties must attend personally to receive 
their passports. The cost is 6^ dollars each. 

The following Official Notice was issued by His 
Excellency the Captain-General of Cuba, 23rd Nov. 
1843: — 

I. — That the Captains of Vessels of every Nation, upon ar- 
riving at Ports in this Island, shall deliver to the " Adjutant of 
the Visit" a List of all Passengers on board, signed by the 
Captain. 

II. — That if Passengers arrive by the said Vessels with a 
view to remain, and not " in transit," the "Adjutant of the 
Visit" shall collect the Passports and examine them, and if he 
find them regular and in order (see Article V.), shall permit 
the Passengers to land, under this positive understanding, that 
they present themselves within twenty-four hours at the " Poli- 
tical Secretary's Office," to take out the proper permit of dis- 
embarkation, accompanied by a responsible person as Surety to 
the Government for their good conduct during One Year of 
residence in the Island. 

III. — That those who do not comply with these conditions, 
or who arrive without proper Passports, shall pay a Fine of 
from Ten to Twenty-five Dollars, and yet remain amenable for 
any infraction of the Island Regulations they may be guilty of. 

IV. — Passengers who do not deliver their Passports to the 
Adjutant at the time of " Visit," in the manner herein set 
forth, or who fail in any of the formalities indicated, are not to 
land without special permission, which will be given them 
after they have entered into the required Sureties. 

V. — To determine what Passports are in proper form, it is 
to be understood all such are, as are granted to Passengers by 
the Local Authorities of the places where they embark, if 
Spaniards ; and if Foreigners, in addition thereto they shall be 
vize by the Spanish Consuls at such Ports. 

VI. — Under the like formalities of presenting a List of Pas- 
sengers, signed by the Captain, and of its previous comparison 
by the " Adjutant of the Visit," (but without taking away their 
Passports), all Passengers arriving by Vessels that touch at or 



HAVAXA. 



91 



put into Ports in this Island, "in transit," may disembark 
under the responsibility of their Consignees, or of the House 
to which they may be addressed. 

VII. — Captains or Commanders, who, without delivering 
a signed List of their Passengers to the Adjutant, permit 
them to disembark, or conceal any of them on board, shall 
suffer a Fine of from Fifty to One Thousand Dollars, accord- 
ing to the degree of the offence. 

(Signed) Jos. T. Crawford, Consul. Gen. in Cuba. 

Consul General' s Office, 
Havana, 2\th Nov. 1843. 

To obtain a passport, application must be made by 
letter from a banker, member of parliament, or a 
well known merchant to the Secretary of State for 
foreign affairs; the word " Passport" being written 
in the left hand corner, — and on the following clay 
the passport can be obtained on application at the 
Foreign Office, 16, Downing Street, and payment 
of £2 7s. 6d. This must be vize by the Spanish 
Ambassador at 22, Gloucester Place, but for which 
no charge is made. 

The effect on entering the city is most striking to 
a stranger, especially to an Englishman]. Houses, 
shops, men, women, costumes, animals and carriages, 
all present a remarkable contrast to anything En- 
glish. The shops are open to the street. 

There are several hotels. That most frequented 
by the English and Americans is called the " Man- 
sion House," or, " La Fonda de los Americanos," 
in the Calle de Obra pia. It is kept by Ameri- 
cans; is a good house and of large proportions. The 
dining room is 90 feet in length, and the principal 
corridor more than 200 feet long, yet it is not con- 
sidered a very large house in Havana, some of those 



92 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



belonging to the higher classes being much more 
extensive. The doors and windows of these houses 
are generally very large and lofty ; the latter are 
open from the floor of the room, and are not glazed, 
but are secured by iron or wooden bars, which give 
them a prison-like appearance. The rooms, in ge- 
neral, contain very little furniture. 

There has not been any regular census of the whole 
population since the year 1827 } when it amounted, 
including whites, free negroes, free people of colour 
and slaves, and also including the troops, the crews of 
vessels in the harbour, the followers of both, and other 
transient persons, to 730,562. But since 1827, the 
general population must have considerably encreased. 
As regards the free inhabitants this is proved by the 
exorbitant rents which are obtained for houses in 
towns notwithstanding the vast numbers which have 
constantly been building. At Havana it is not un- 
usual to pay as much as £300 sterling a year for a 
house of not more than five or six rooms ; and even 
then the indispensable volante must stand in the 
lobby or gateway, and not unfrequently in the prin- 
cipal sitting-room, for the reception of visitors. 

The dress of the whites varies very little from 
that of Europe. The coloured people dress as they 
can, some being almost naked, while others are very 
smart. " I noticed one black beauty," writes a 
friend, "who wore a white muslin dress, a bright 
scarlet shawl, and light blue shoes." 

Doubloons or onzas, dollars, pesos and reals, are 
the current monies. 

Mr. Tumbull gives the following description of 
the bank: — "The only incorporated banking esta- 
blishment at the Havana is that called the Royal 



HAVANA. 



93 



Bank of Ferdinand the Seventh, which was created 
in the year 1827, during the administration of Bal- 
lasteros at Madrid, at the instance of Senor Penillos, 
since raised to the dignity of Conde de Yillanueva. 
The first directors were the Conde de Santovenia, 
the Conde de la Reunion de Cuba, and Don Joaquin 
Gomez. The capital of this hank, amounting to a 
million of dollars, was provided by the Spanish 
government. Its business is confined to the dis- 
counting of promissory notes and bills of exchange; 
and the directors are prohibited from engaging in 
any other speculation, however lucrative it may ap- 
pear, under the pain of being held personally re- 
sponsible. The rate of discount is fixed at the 
rate of 10 per cent, per annum; the currency of 
the notes or bills of exchange discounted is limited 
to three months, and the directors are forbidden 
to give credit to any one individual, or to any single 
house of business, beyond the limit of ten thousand 
dollars. Two signatures satisfactory to the ma- 
jority of the directors are declared to be indis- 
pensable; and unusual precautions are taken for 
the preservation of secrecy, in the event of rejec- 
tion. Should the bills or notes discounted remain 
unpaid at maturity, the directors are authorised, if 
the debtor be a merchant, to seize the goods which 
may stand in his name at the custom-house, or in 
the bonded warehouses of the government; and if 
he be a planter or hacendado, they are in like man- 
ner authorised, should sufficient produce not be forth- 
coming, to confiscate his domestic slaves and his 
household furniture; and should these also prove in- 
sufficient to extinguish the debt, then authority is 
given to attach the field slaves, and live stock, and 



94 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



such other personal property as may be found on 
the debtor's estates. After such confiscation the di- 
rectors are prohibited from interrupting the proceed- 
ings against the debtor, by the acceptance of security 
for the debt, or on any other ground but the actual 
payment of the money. No new discount is to be 
given to an individual or a house of business once 
guilty of irregularity in their payments, for a period 
of three years at least, however much their circum- 
stances may in the mean time have improved; and 
individuals applying for discount are to understand 
that they renounce in favour of the bank all personal 
privileges and immunities to which they may be en- 
titled. Even the dowry of the wife is declared to be 
liable for the whole amount of the bank's claims 
against the husband. 

" The directors of the bank are held responsible 
for their proceedings to the government to the extent 
of a hundred thousand dollars each. For this amount, 
hypothecs or mortgages over real property are to be 
taken. The cashiers, book-keepers, clerks, and ser- 
vants of the bank are named by the directors, by 
whom the salaries are fixed. Each director is to 
keep one of the three keys of the strong box; and 
no payment is to be made without the presence of at 
least one director, who may receive and use the keys 
of his colleagues. The responsibility of the direc- 
tors is limited to the case of their granting discounts 
to persons not known to be in the possession of pro- 
perty, and in the notorious enjoyment of credit; and 
to their infringement of the rules of the bank, which, 
in this respect, are assimilated to the laws which go- 
vern the administration of the national finances. An 
account is to be presented to the President, weekly, 



HAVANA. 



95 



of the state of the funds; and once a month he is to 
assist, in person, at the verification of the cash, 
which the directors are required to have balanced. 
At the end of each year, a general balance of the 
affairs of the bank is to be struck, and after being 
examined by the Court of Accounts, and approved 
of by the President, it is to be published for public 
information. The directors are authorised to appro- 
priate 20 per cent, of the profits during the year to 
the payment of the salaries of the officers of the 
establishment and the other expenses of management. 
The business of the bank has hitherto been in a great 
measure confined to the management of the financial 
affairs of the colony. No notes are issued; but pro- 
vision is made in the Reghmento, or code of laws for 
its government, that in the event of its becoming 
desirable to augment the active capital, deposits may 
be received and interest paid thereon, at the rate of 
7 per cent, per annum. Should the property of 
foreigners be so deposited, it is declared to be under 
the royal protection, and not be liable to confiscation 
or attachment on account of war, or reprisals, or un- 
der any other pretext whatever. These provisions of 
the code for the increase of the capital have not, how- 
ever, yet been acted on; so that, upon the whole, 
its capital is too small, and its management too com- 
plicated to enable the institution to be of much 
practical use to the public." 

The periodical literature of the island is more 
considerable than might have been expected, under 
the paralyzing influence of an unsparing censorship. 
There are eight newspapers published in Cuba, of 
which four are daily, viz., the Diario de la Havana, 
and the Noticioso y Lucero, both belonging to the 



96 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



capital, and the circulation of which are said to he 
considerable, the Aurora, of Matanzas, and the 
Redactor de Cuba, published at Santiago. The other 
four are the Eco de Villaclara, the Correo de Tri- 
nidad, the Gaceta de Puerta Principe, and the 
Fenix of Sancti-Spiritus. Besides the newspapers, 
there are published at the Havana, several literary 
periodicals, such as the Album, the Mariposa, the 
Siempreviva, the Cartera, and the Memorias de la 
Real Sociedad Patriotica. 

The only carriages used in Havana are the "vo- 
lantes," a sort of cabriolet with very long shafts and 
two wheels, each of them six feet in diameter, placed 
quite in the rear of the vehicle. A negro slave drives 
a la postilion, generally dressed in a smart livery. 
Agreements should be made with these drivers, when 
hiring them, as otherwise their demands are very 
exorbitant. Some of the private volantes are elegant, 
and the liveries exceedingly rich. 

There are some charming promenades in Havana. 
The Paseo de Tacon, formed by the late Governor, 
is particularly worthy of notice. It is the rendezvous 
of the beau monde, especially on Sundays, w 7 hen 
there is a constant succession of volantes. The Paseo 
is very long, and is ornamented with several foun- 
tains and statues. Another favourite place of resort 
is the Plaza des Armas near the Governor's Palace. 
Here, in a beautiful garden, shaded by various trees, 
the military bands play from 8 to 9 o'clock on several 
evenings during the week. 

" I am delighted" writes Fanny Elssler, (Frazer's 
Mag. No. 171), "that I have come hither, not for 
the extension of my renommee merely, but rather for 
the charm I find in every thing that surrounds me. 



HAVANA. 



97 



The sky, the clime, its luscious plants, — the people, 
their generosity, their hospitality, — and scenes and 
sights that are so novel and pleasing, — all combine 
to make my residence here indescribably pleasant, 
and will furnish my memory with some of its most 
brilliant retrospections. . . . Imagine yourself just with- 
out the city walls, moving gently along on the afore- 
said volante over a smooth road of upwards of a mile 
in length, planted on either side with double rows of 
young but thriving trees, adorned with graceful 
fountains in marble, whose trickling waters fall 
gratefully on the ears. At one end of the road we 
are just turning, you see a very noble edifice ; you 
mistake it for a nobleman's palace. Imposing as is 
its exterior, it is devoted to darkness and crime 
within : it is the Tacon Prison. In ascending you 
observe that this part of the road is but newly opened, 
and as yet incomplete. A fountain is erecting here, 
the grounds adjoining are being laid out for orna- 
mental purposes, and there some pretty houses are 
in process of erection. On reaching the middle part 
of the promenade we find ourselves opposite the main 
entrance to the town, with a very striking building 
of great dimensions rearing its colonnade on the right. 
I look upon that, you see, with a familiar glance of 
recognition — that is the Tacon Theatre. We pass on 
and find ourselves in the most beautiful portion of 
the Paseo. It is evidently the favourite resort of 
the crowd. It is six o'clock, the witching hour; 
for now the scorching sun of noonday has passed 
on his fiery course, casting back the mild radiance 
of his declining rays, softening the beauty of earth, 
and shedding a glory upon the southern skies that 
it is delight to look upon. At this lovely hour behold 

H 



98 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



every city gate pouring forth its daily frequenters of 
the Paseo ; the walks are crowded by gay pedestrians 
in sociable converse ; while the stone benches, libe- 
rally provided for the loungers, are occupied by 
others who calmly gaze on the panorama before 
them, luxuriating in the passionate enjoyment of 
their cigaritos. 

"On either side of the carriage-road is a string of 
volant es moving in opposite directions, of all shapes, 
colours, and pretensions, — the elegantly adorned and 
silver-embossed harness of the rich noble's "turn- 
out," to the more unpretending one of the homely 
cit. It is amusing to see the passion a Havaneco 
has for a volante; it seems with him the first neces- 
sary of life, — his vade mecum, his food and drink, 
making his life luxurious, and his ambition contented. 
There is more in this than the mere usage, or as 
determining his claim to respectable competence; in 
truth, the climate requires this indispensable agremen. 
. . . Just look at those ladies in their open volante in 
full dress, as is the custom of an afternoon on the 
Paseo. Low dresses, short sleeves, no bonnets, a 
graceful mantilla supplies its place, fans in their 
hands, roses in their hair, fire in their eyes, mischief 
in their glances, smiling soft recognitions to friends 
and acquaintances. How could such things be if 
their toes were cold, and a sharp wind was making 
havoc with their noses? I tell you the air is balmy, 
the sky serene as a good woman's conscience, and 
the warmth languidly oppressive, and it is the 10th 
day of February, 1841." 

There are two theatres; one called "El Teatro 
Principal," is close to the bay, and is remarkable 
for its curious roof, which is like a boat turned keel 



HAVANA. 



99 



upwards. The other, erected by General Tacon near 
the Paseo, and called " El Teatro de Tacon/ 5 is a 
large and elegant building. The interior is exceed- 
ingly light and chastely ornamented; the boxes are 
merely separated by a slight railing; and the pit-seats 
have backs and arms, and are numbered. Besides 
these theatres there is un Plaza de Toros, or place 
for bull-fights. 

The cathedral will repay the traveller for a visit. 
It is a plain but noble building, and the monuments 
are disposed generally with good taste. It contains 
some good pictures and a fine marble monument, sur- 
mounted by a statue of the Virgin. On the right of 
this an urn, containing the remains of Columbus,* is 

* The proper name of him whom we call Columbus, was in Italian 
Christoforo Colombo; given in Spanish as Cristoval Colon; in French, 
Cristophe Colombe. It has been Latinized into Columbus; but the "u," 
says a learned and ingenious friend, "is a barbarism, neither consonant 
with the genius of the language, nor with the fact as to the name." 
The birth-place of Colombo was Coguretto, a maritime village on the 
coast, about four leagues westward from Genoa : the same which is 
represented as Cogoletto and Cocolata. Here this illustrious man was 
born, in or subsequent to 1442, and he died at Valladolid in Spain, 
in 1506, where a tomb erected to his memory, was inscribed, " A 
Castillo y a Leon, Nuevo Mundo dio Colon." To Castile and Leon 
Colon has given a New World. 

The following is from Washington Irving's most interesting account 
of the life and voyages of Columbus. 

" The body of Columbus was deposited in the convent of S. Fran- 
cisco, and his obsequies were celebrated with funereal pomp in the 
parochial church of Santa Maria de la Antigua, in Valladolid. His 
remains were transported, in 1513, to the Carthusian convent of Las 
Cuevas, at Seville, and deposited in the chapel of Santa Christo. In 
the year 1536, they were removed to Hispaniola, and interred by the 
side of the grand altar of the cathedral of the city of San Domingo. 
But even here they did not rest in quiet. On the cession of Hispaniola 
to the French in 1795, it was determined by the Spaniards to bear 
them off to the island of Cuba as precious relics, connected with the 
most glorious epoch of Spanish history. Accordingly, on the 20th 
December, 1795, in the presence of an august assemblage of the dig- 
nitaries of the church and the civil and military officers, the vault was 
opened beside the high altar of the cathedral : within were found the 
fragments of a leaden coffin, a number of bones, and a quantity of 
mould, evidently the remains of a human body. These were carefully 

H 2 



100 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



enclosed in the wall, behind a fine basso relievo, in 
marble, of the bust of the great navigator, the size 
of life, under which is the following inscription: — 

" O Restos 6 Imagen del grande Colon 
Mil siglos durad guardados en la urna 
Y en la remembiancia de nuestra nacion." 
O remains and image of the great Columbus, 
For a thousand age3 continue preserved in this urn, 
And in the remembrance of our nation. 

Opposite to the tomb of Columbus there is a small 
and beautiful painting, bearing date 1473, and said 
to represent the Pope and Cardinals celebrating mass 
previous to the expedition of Columbus. 

" Besides the cathedral, the city contains nine pa- 
rish churches; six other churches, connected with hos- 
pitals, and military orders ; five chapels or hermitages ; 
the Casa Cuna, a foundling hospital; and eleven con- 
vents, four for women and seven for men; some of 
which last, during the administration of Captain- 

collected, and put into a case of gilded lead, secured by an iron lock ; 
the case was enclosed in a coffin covered with black velvet, and the 
whole placed in a temporary mausoleum. On the following day there 
was another grand convocation at the cathedral : the vigils and masses 
for the dead were chanted, and a funeral sermon was preached by the 
archbishop. After these solemn ceremonials in the cathedral, the 
coffin was transported to the ship, attended by a grand civil, religious, 
and military procession. The banners were covered with crape ; there 
were chants and responses, and discharges of artillery; and the most 
distinguished persons of the several orders took turns to support the 
coffin. 

The reception of the body at Havana was equally august. There was 
a splendid procession of boats to conduct it from the ship to the shore. 
On passing the vessels of war in the harbour, they all paid the honours 
due to an admiral and captain-general of the navy. On arriving at the 
mole, the remains were met by the governor of the island, accompanied 
by the generals of the military staff. They were then conveyed in the 
utmost pomp to the cathedral. Masses and the solemn ceremonies of 
the dead were performed by the bishop, and the mortal remains of 
Columbus were deposited in the wall, on the right side of the grand 
altar, where they still remain." 



HAVANA. 



101 



General Tacon, were used as barracks and applied to 
other secular purposes. The other public establish- 
ments are the University, the Colleges of San Carlos 
and San Francisco de Sales, the Botanic Garden, the 
Anatomical Museum and Lecture-rooms, the Aca- 
demy of Painting and Design, a School of Navigation, 
and seventy-eight common schools for both sexes. 
These places of education are all under the protection 
of the Patriotic Society, and the municipal autho- 
rities. The charitable institutions consist of the Casa 
de Beneficencia for both sexes, a penitentiary or 
Magdalen asylum, and seven hospitals, one of them 
containing a lunatic asylum. 

There are several mineral springs in the island; 
and coal, highly bituminous and of an excellent 
quality, has been found close to the surface and 
within ten miles of Havana. But the roads are so 
bad that little of this has yet been worked. 

There are frequent communications by steam from 
Havana to other parts of the island, viz. : three times 
a week to Matanzas, at the charge of 6 dollars; once 
a month to St. Jago de Cuba, by railway 42 miles, 
across to Batabano in the south, from whence the 
steamer starts for St. Jago de Cuba, calling at 
Cienfuegos, Trinidad de Cuba, Santa Cruz, and Man- 
zanillo; and returning from St. Jago on the 14th of 
each month, calling at the same places. The whole 
passage is performed in six days, including landing 
and stoppages; passage and fare to St. Jago, in- 
cluding railway to Batabano, is 85 dollars. 

To New Orleans there is communication twice a 
month, by the Alabama, American steamer. She 
stops at Havana from four and a half to six days, 
and is generally there when the Boyal Mail steamers 



102 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



arrive. She is a large and commodious vessel, ex- 
ceedingly clean and comfortable. Her commander 
and part-owner, Mr. Windle, is an intelligent gen- 
tlemanly Englishman. She makes the passage to 
New Orleans in about three days and a half. Pas- 
sage-money, 40 dollars, including an excellent table; 
wines and spirits extra. 

The Government is a military despotism; there 
are about 16,000 military on the island. 

The thermometer ranges from 60° to 96° of Fa- 
renheit, in the shade. Winter is the healthy season; 
it commences in November and lasts till February. 
It is generally in May that the rainy season com- 
mences, but sometimes it begins in April, and occa- 
sionally not till June. Of late years, however, the 
island suffers much more from excessive drought 
than from rain, this is ascribed, with some appear- 
ance of truth, to the cutting down of the trees. The 
dews are both copious, and to Europeans, dangerous. 

There are many physicians. Dr. Meikleham, a 
Scotchman, residing near the cathedral is in high 
estimation. 

Joseph Tucker Crawford, Esq., is her Britannic 
Majesty's Consul-General at Havana, and Agent for 
the Royal Mail Steam Packets. 



HAVANA. 



103 









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( 105 ) 




VERA CRUZ. 

From Havana the steamer proceeds to Vera Cruz 
with mails and passengers. The distance is 810 
miles, and which is accomplished in about four days. 
In sailing vessels, however, the passage through the 
Gulf of Mexico is often very tedious, owing to the 
frequent calms. But the number and variety of the 
finny tribes, the birds, the shoals of whales, the 
multitudes of flying-fishes, which support themselves 
out of water for a considerable time, the bonitos, the 
dolphins, and the glorious evening appearance of the 
sky, are constant sources of enjoyment. 



106 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Should the voyager be crossing the bay of Mexico 
when the moon is near the full, he may be gratified 
with a sight of the rising of that luminary, far sur- 
passing in splendour anything of a similar character 
in our northern hemisphere. She will be seen to rise 
from the line of the horizon with a dark, scarlet hue, 
like a mass of fire. The voyager may also be subject 
to the influence of one of those fierce blasts, that 
come on suddenly from the north, called "Nortes." 
The effect of these gales are to be feared should a 
sailing ship be near the shore; but in a steamer they 
are of trifling consequence, except that they may 
for a time prevent the passsenger from embarking or 
landing. Nothing can be more melancholy than the 
appearance of Vera Cruz during one of these winds. 
The air is filled with sand, and the sky darkened 
with clouds, while the waves are driven with such 
impetuosity upon the beach, that the whole line of 
coast is one sheet of foam. All communication 
between the shipping and the town is suspended, 
even when at anchor under the walls of the castle, 
which are not half a mile from the pier-head. The 
rapidity with which these gales come on is equal to 
their violence. A little ripple from the north first 
indicates their approach, and if boats are out, or on 
shore, not an instant should then be lost in placing 
them in security. In five minutes the strength of 
a whole boat's crew may be exerted in vain, in 
order to keep the head of the boat towards the sea ; 
they may succeed in carrying it through the shoal 
water off Mocambo Point, but if they trust again 
to their oars, they will be compelled to abandon 
the attempt. These winds, however, are of great 
importance to the health of the inhabitants, as they 



VERA CRUZ. 



107 



drive away the malaria which collects along the coast, 
and over the sand hills in the vicinity of the city of 
the " holy cross," and while they continue, there is 
no danger in the detention on shore. 

Should the atmosphere happen to be clear, you 
may catch a view of the snow-covered Peak of 
Orizava, the "Star Mountain," elevated 17,3/5 feet 
above the level of the sea. A passenger, in des- 
cribing this magnificent object at sun-set, has said of 
it, "ona sudden, its towering peak, black with its 
own shadow, and appearing in the mid-heavens, 
became distinctly visible to our naked sight, while 
its base, and three-fourths of its height, were invi- 
sible from the distance. Enveloped in clouds, one 
of the most solemn effects I ever beheld was pro- 
duced by this giant Atlas." " Nothing can be more 
splendid," remarks Mr. Ward, " than the Peak 
of Orizava, when the veil of clouds, which but too 
frequently conceals it during the day, yields to the 
last rays of the setting sun. Such a sun-set, and 
such a mountain, can only be seen beneath the 
tropics, where everything is upon a gigantic scale, 
and where, from the purity of the atmosphere, 
even the flood of light from above seems propor- 
tioned to the magnitude of the objects upon which 
it is poured. 

Orizava is said to be visible in very clear weather 
at sea, at the distance of 150 miles. Its distance 
from Vera Cruz is about 60 miles, west. Its form 
is conical. In 1545 it was volcanic, and continued 
in action for twenty years, since which time there 
has been no appearance of eruption. Though the 
summit be covered with snow, the sides below are 
adorned with beautiful forests of cedars, pines, and 
other trees. 



108 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The Coffer of Perote, another high mountain, (so 
called from a mass of rock, in the shape of a chest, 
which distinguishes the crest of the mountain), is 
also visible from a great distance; it is to the right 
of Orizava, with which it is connected by a long 
chain of intervening mountains, and the two together 
form a beautiful termination to the view from Jalapa. 
The Coffer is nearly 4,000 feet lower than Orizava, 
and looks quite diminutive when the peak is visible 
at the same time, although, when not seen together, 
the eye rests with satisfaction upon so magnificent 
an object. 

Point Delgado, a lofty rock, is the first portion of 
the coast that appears in sight. Then, steering 
southward, the light-house and Castle of San Juan 
de Ulua become visible, and afterwards, Vera Cruz 
appears, which with its numerous red and white 
cupolas, domes, towers, and battlements, has a 
splendid appearance from the water. 

The passage to Vera Cruz is through a narrow 
channel, between sunken coral reefs, upon one ex- 
tremity of which the castle is erected, the walls ap- 
pearing to rise directly out of the water. On the 
eastern side the reef is elevated just above the level 
of the sea. 

Ships anchor under the western wall of the castle, 
distant about a mile from the Mole or landing-place 
at the city. Passengers are landed by shore-boats 
at about 1 \ to 5 dollars, according to the quantity 
of luggage. 

Luggage must be examined at the entering-office 
of the port; the officers are generally very civil and 
considerate. Passengers are allowed to introduce 
such clothing as may appear necessary and reasonable 
for their personal use. Ready-made clothing, as an 



VERA CRUZ. 



109 



article of merchandize, is prohibited. Articles of 
merchandize, as enumerated in the Mexican tariff, 
cannot be introduced by the steamers, as these vessels 
do not pay tonnage-dues, nor declare their cargo. 

Money cannot be conveyed on board by passengers 
without the payment of the export-duty, augmented 
since the 16th June, 1843, from 34 to 6 per Cent. 
Neither are they allowed to embark precious metals 
or mineralogical specimens collected in the country, 
without especial permission from the Government. 

Passengers must bring passports from the Ministers 
or Consuls of the Republic abroad, without which 
they cannot land; and on embarking, they must pro- 
cure passports from the proper authorities at Vera 
Cruz. The cost is 2 dollars; and they will have to 
attend personally. In London, passports are obtained 
from the Mexican Minister free of charge, application 
being made by letter from a merchant or banker to 
his Excellency Don Thomas Murphy, 7, Suffolk 
Place, Regent's Park. 

There is something "triste" and gloomy about 
Vera Cruz; an effect which is heightened by the 
numerous vultures, called Sopilotes, that hover over 
the city, or wander through the streets, or after 
their meal of garbage, cover the church towers. Yet 
these birds are most useful, and the killing of them 
is prohibited by law; they are in fact the scavengers 
of the city, and but for them and the dogs, the ma- 
laria would be even worse than it is. In other re- 
spects Vera Cruz is worthy of a better situation. 
The streets are wide and the houses very large and 
spacious, and constructed of sufficient strength to 
stand a siege. The roofs are flat and of considerable 
thickness to be proof against the heavy rains and 



110 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



the intense heat of the sun. Some of the mer- 
chants preserve shells and cannon-balls which had 
lodged in their houses during the French attack on 
the Castle of San Juan de Ulua in 1838. 

The following account of this attack is derived from 
the letters of an eye witness. The French Minister 
not receiving any satisfactory reply to his demands 
for compensation to French citizens for losses and in- 
juries done to them, retired on board a frigate in the 
harbour, and from thence, on the 21st March, 1838, 
issued his ultimatum, demanding an answer by the 
15th of April. On the 16th of April no answer 
having been received, the French squadron, consisting 
of 1 frigate and 5 brigs began the blockade of the 
harbour of Vera Cruz. The Mexicans to counteract 
this proceeding opened five ports along the coast; 
and the French, although their squadron was en- 
creased by several other vessels of war, made no 
impression on the determination of the Mexicans. 
Sickness prevailed in October, so much among the 
French, that two of their vessels were dispatched 
with the sick to Havana. On the 7th of November 
Admiral Baudin arrived with a strong force. One of 
the vessels, the Creole, was commanded by the Prince 
de Joinville. Still the Mexicans refused the condi- 
tions, and although Admiral Baudin went to Jalapa to 
hold a conference with the Mexicans, he returned to 
Vera Cruz without effecting any arrangement. The 
Mexican Government having thus refused to accede to 
the terms proposed by the French admiral, on the 
27th November, the fleet under his command began 
hostilities against the Castle of San Juan de Ulua. 

After four hours destructive and incessant firing, 
the Castle, under the command of General Rincon, 



VERA CRUZ. 



Ill 



was reduced to the necessity of surrendering; nearly 
all the guns which could be brought to bear on the 
ships having been dismounted, the defences destroyed, 
two powder magazines blown up by the bursting of 
shells, and all the ammunition expended. The loss 
of the Mexicans, who, under the greatest disadvan- 
tages both in position and artillery, defended the 
place to the last, was about 200 killed and as many 
wounded, while that of the French was said to be 
very trifling. The French suffered much more from 
sickness which prevailed amongst them during their 
stay on the coast. Their losses by this means were 
very severe. 

The town of Vera Cruz suffered considerably from 
stray balls and shells but no lives were lost. 

The terms made by General Rincon with the 
French were to the following effect: — viz., the rem- 
nant of the Mexican garrison to retire with their arms 
and colours; Vera Cruz to remain with a garrison of 
not more than 1,000 men in the hands of the Mex- 
icans; an armistice of eight months for an amicable 
arrangement of the differences with France; and the 
re-opening, by a suspension of the blockade, of these 
ports to all nations. 

Subsequently the Government refused to ratify 
the Convention made with the French, — deprived 
General Rincon of his command, and nominated in 
his stead General Santa Anna, who ordered the gates 
to be shut against the French and all communication 
with them to be suspended. 

The French admiral hereupon requested three days 
for his countrymen to remove their property, which 
was granted, and the same afternoon the admiral 
sent a flag ashore with a letter, the answer to which 



112 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



he said he would send for the next day (5th Dec.) at 
eight o'clock. Before dawn, however, the French 
had already landed 2,000 men, who took possession 
of the forts, spiking the guns, breaking the car- 
riages and carrying off the ammunition. They also 
made several prisoners, amongst them General Arista. 
Santa Anna, who narrowly escaped, succeeded in 
getting together a body of men, with whom, shut up 
in a barrack, he bravely defended himself; and the 
French, unable to take the place by assault, retired, 
fearing the arrival of troops from the interior. In 
leading a charge against the covering party of the 
French, Santa Anna was wounded in the leg and 
hand, the former so severely that amputation was 
found necessary. The French retired to their vessels, 
from which they opened a heavy fire upon the bar- 
rack. In consequence of these events, the Mexicans 
abandoned the city and all the inhabitants were 
ordered to evacuate it without delay. A law was 
also passed in the capital by which all Frenchmen 
were to quit the country in sixty days. 

On the 22nd December, H.B.M. frigate Pique with 
Mr. Packenham, who was deputed by the British 
Government to mediate between the belligerents, ar- 
rived, attended by twelve British ships of war which 
anchored off Sacrificios. Hostilities were from that 
time discontinued, and at length, through Mr. Pack- 
enham' s exertions, peace was declared on 8th March, 
1839, and on the 6th April, the French delivered up 
to the Mexicans the Castle of St. Juan de Ulua, who 
again hoisted the national flag. 

The money current is dollars and doubloons. 
Banking has not been introduced into Vera Cruz or 
the other cities of Mexico. 



VERA CRUZ. 



113 



On entering the gates from the Mole, the French 
hotel of Auguste is immediately in front. The hotel 
most resorted to by the English and Americans is 
the " Casa de Diligencias" situated in the principal 
square, which has lately been enlarged and improved; 
it is by far the best hotel in the place. The charge 
made by these houses is 2 dollars per diem, exclusive 
of wines, &c. The water used is the rain preserved 
in tanks. The market at sun-rise presents a curious 
and animated appearance. It is attended by Indians 
whose diversity of costume and variety of character 
form an interesting spectacle. The vegetables are 
few and inferior. The meat being cut into ribbons, 
and dried in the sun without salt, is disgusting; but 
the show of fish, will make amends, for it is generally 
of infinite variety and beauty, presenting the most 
resplendent hues and varieties, that vie in lustre, 
when fresh from the water, with the most precious 
stones, or the brilliant plumage of birds. Of the 
hundreds of species Mr. Bullock only noticed one 
sort, the mullet, that belonged to Europe; all the 
rest were new to him. The Indians also bring to 
market a considerable variety of water fowl, tortoises, 
armadillos, and a few deer. 

The city possesses a small theatre, where may be 
seen a singular variety in the dress and complexions 
of the audience. Smoking in the theatre (as at 
Havana) is no longer permitted at Vera Cruz. Co- 
medians, on their way to Mexico, at times, give a 
series of representations; but the building is closed 
the greater part of the year. 

There are the exchange rooms, where domestic 
and foreign papers are received, and the exchange 
billiard rooms. 

i 



114 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The number of military at Vera Cruz is contingent 
on the political state of the country; the number 
varies from 2,000 to 4,000 men. 

The usual mode of travelling to the interior is by 
coach, or diligence, which leaves for Mexico three 
times a week, and is four days on its transit. The 
distance to Mexico is 250 miles, and the fare by 
coach is 50 dollars. Females, or infirm persons, 
can always procure litters to Jalapa, about 20 
leagues distant on the road to Mexico, at a cost 
of 40 dollars. 

The diligences are generally of American con- 
struction, and most of the drivers are Americans. 
These vehicles hold nine persons each, inside; three 
of whom sit across the middle, their backs being 
supported by a leather strap stretched across from 
window to window. The road to Mexico was a 
monument of human skill and industry, but it was 
broken up in several places during the revolution to 
prevent the royalists bringing forward their artillery, 
and it has never been properly repaired since. Along 
this road from Vera Cruz to Mexico the extremes of 
the most barren sands and sterile wastes, are con- 
trasted with the richest luxuriance and most magni- 
ficent foliage and scenery. The flowers and trees of 
the temperate zones vie in luxuriance with the 
gorgeous plants and fruits of the torrid zone, and 
mountain and ravine, and river and forest, are all 
magnificent. 

On the ascent from Vera Cruz, climates, to use 
the expression of Humboldt, succeed each other 
in layers; and the traveller passes in review, in 
the course of two days, the whole scale of vege- 
tation, from the parasitic plants of the tropics to the 



VERA CRUZ. 



115 



pines of the arctic regions. In some parts, however, 
the climate is very insalubrious. The humidity of 
the coast favouring the putrefaction of a prodigious 
mass of organic substances, originates diseases which 
attack Europeans and others not familiarized to the 
climate; indeed, under the burning sun of the tro- 
pics, the unhealthiness of the air is almost invariably 
a sure indication of extraordinary fertility of the soil. 
Nevertheless, with the exception of some sea-ports, 
and a few deep and humid valleys, where the natives 
suffer intermittent fever, Mexico ought upon the whole 
to be considered as a singularly healthy country. 

Packet ships pass to and from New York once 
a month. The cabin fare to New York is 125 dollars. 
There are frequent opportunities by vessels to Havana 
and occasionally to New Orleans. The Royal Mail 
steamers visit Vera Cruz twice, and Tampico once, 
each month. The steamer after she has landed her 
mails and passengers at Vera Cruz proceeds to Tam- 
pico, where, having waited long enough to receive 
the mails, passengers, and specie from thence, re- 
traces her course again to Vera Cruz, where in the 
mean time the mails, passengers, and specie, &c, 
have been collecting for her. She then proceeds to 
Havana direct, and thence, having first coaled, to 
Nassau, Bermuda and home. At Havana she will 
meet the steamer that has brought out the mails from 
England, and affords a means of immediate reply to 
these. Passengers for the other parts of the West 
Indies will also find conveyance at Havana by the 
steamer arriving monthly from Bermuda and Nassau, 
and proceeding from Havana to Jamaica, St. Jago 
de Cuba, and all the windward islands. 

The average height of the thermometer in summer 

i 2 



116 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



at Vera Cruz is about 86° and in the winter 76°. It, 
however, frequently rises to 90°, and has fallen 
during the winter months to 59°. The rainy season 
is during summer. The heavy rains generally com- 
mence about June and continue to September. From 
September to March the " Nortes" blow, which 
render the air more salubrious. 

During the hot season Vera Cruz is very unhealthy, 
frequently proving fatal to persons recently arrived 
from abroad. At Jalapa, however, where the region 
of Oaks commences, the yellow fever is unknown. 

Passengers should provide themselves amply with 
light clothing for the Gulf passage and for Vera 
Cruz, but should have also substantial European 
clothing if going to the interior. 

The practitioners at Vera Cruz are in good repute; 
those best known are Drs. Gay dan, Carrillo, and 
Mendizabal. 

The British Consul at Vera Cruz is Francis Giffard, 
Esq. The Agents of the Royal Mail steamers are 
Messrs. Manning, Mackintosh, and Co. The Mexican 
Minister in London, is Don Thomas Murphy, re- 
siding in Sussex Place, Regent's Park; the Consul 
is F. de Lizardi, Esq., Austin Friars, City. 

The mines of gold and silver form the prime objects 
which have associated the idea of boundless wealth 
and indefinite splendour with the name of Mexico. 
Gold is more plentiful in Peru; but since they were 
first wrought, the mines of Mexico have produced 
more silver then all the rest of the world united. 
The ore is far from being rich; but it is found in 
vast quantities, in the very finest and healthiest parts 
of the country, and can be obtained with compara- 
tively little difficulty. Prior to 1810, the country 



VERA CRUZ. 



117 



was supposed to contain five hundred reals, or spots 
in which mines were worked, with from three to five 
thousand mines large or small, included in 37 mining 
districts, into which the viceroyalty was divided by 
the Government of the mother country. But these 
were confined to a comparatively narrow circle; for 
the immense mass of silver which the country has 
yielded since the conquest, and which was calculated 
by Humboldt in the year 1803 at 1,767,952,000 
dollars, has proceeded from a few central spots of 
the table land, in which the capital and activity of 
the first speculators form ample employment. Yet 
three centuries of constant productiveness have been 
insufficient to exhaust the principal mines originally 
worked; whilst by far the larger proportion of the 
great veins still remain unexplored. 

During the excited speculations of 1825 numerous 
companies w r ere formed in England, for the working 
of Mexican mines by British capital, and their shares 
were sold for some time at advancing premiums. 
The hopes held out by the projectors have not yet 
been realized; but there is every reason to believe 
that in time, the capitals invested in these under- 
takings will become productive. There are vast fields 
yet unexplored, and it is supposed that there are 
districts more valuable in ores than any yet worked. 
The ores appear to encrease in richness the farther 
north the operations are prosecuted. 

The mines of Mexico are found in regions of mo- 
derate elevation and temperature. Those that are 
most valuable are at the height of 6,000 to 10,000 
feet above the level of the ocean, and consequently 
are exempt from that severity of cold which is found 
so injurious in Peru. It is from the healthiness of 



118 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



the climate in which the mines are situated, and from 
the fertility of the land about them, that Mexico 
has been enabled to extract so large a quantity of 
mineral wealth, rather than to the richness of the 
ore, or the accessibility of the veins. The mines are 
worked by freemen, compulsory labour being un- 
known in Mexico. The miners are particular tribes 
of Indians, who have been miners from generation to 
generation, and who lead a roving life, migrating 
with their wives and children from one district to 
another, as they are attracted by the fame of superior 
riches. They are paid by partido, or a share in the 
ore raised, which is preferred to regular wages how- 
ever high. The natives, far from looking upon mining 
with repugnance, have a very great love for it, and 
in some places, look down with contempt upon those 
engaged in agriculture. 

On the 13th of June, 1843, the following consti- 
tution was proclaimed, as the result of the deliberation 
of the Junta of Notables convened for that purpose 
by Santa Anna, the provisional president. It is 
entitled the Bases of Political Organization 
of the Mexican Republic. 

I. By this instrument it is declared that Mexico 
adopts the form of a popular representative govern- 
ment; that the territory shall be divided into depart- 
ments; that the political power essentially resides 
in the nation; and that the Holy Roman Catholic 
and Apostolic Creed is professed and protected to the 
exclusion of all others. 

II. Slavery is not permitted; no one is to be mo- 
lested for his opinions, or called on for contributions, 
except such as are regularly imposed by law. 



VERA CRUZ. 



119 



III. Specifies who are Mexican citizens, their 
rights, and obligations. Citizens are all who are 
born within the Mexican territory, or beyond it of 
a Mexican father; all who were in Mexico in 1821, 
and had not renounced their allegiance; all who are 
natives of central America when it belonged to Mex- 
ico; and lastly, all who have obtained or shall 
obtain letters of naturalization. In order to obtain 
the right of voting, Mexicans must be 18 years of 
age and married, or 21 years if not married; they 
must have an annual income of at least 200 dollars, 
derived from capital, trade, or honest personal labour. 
In addition to these no one will be allowed to vote 
after the year 1850, unless he can read and write. 
The rights of citizenship are suspended by domestic 
servitude, habitual intemperance, taking religious 
vows, fraudulent bankruptcy, or keeping prohibited 
gaming houses. 

IV. Defines the legislature; which is to consist of 
a Congress divided into a Chamber of Deputies, and a 
Senate. The Chamber of Deputies is to be com- 
posed of individuals that shall be elected by the Elec- 
toral Colleges of the Departments, in the ratio of one 
to 70,000 inhabitants. Departments, however, that 
have not so many residents, shall be entitled to a 
Deputy, and there shall likewise be one for every 
fraction over 35,000 inhabitants. It is required that 
the Deputy shall be at least 30 years of age, and be 
possessed of an annual income of 1,200 dollars. A 
moiety of the Chamber is to be renewed every two 
years. 

The Senate is to be composed of 63 members, 
two-thirds of whom are to be elected by the Depart- 
mental Assemblies, and the other third by the Cham- 



120 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE, 



ber of Deputies, the President of the Republic, and 
the Supreme Court of Justice. Senators must possess 
an annual income of 2,000 dollars. One-third of this 
body is to be renewed biennially. 

The Congress so constituted, will sit twice a 
year for the space of three months, commencing its 
terms on the 1st of January and 1st of July. Its 
members are not allowed to obtain place or preferment 
from the Government, except for the most imperative 
reasons. 

A third body, called the Permanent Deputation, 
is to be formed by this Congress, and will be com- 
posed of four members of the Senate and five of the 
Chamber, whose term of office shall continue until 
the next meeting of the National Assembly, and the 
election of their successors. The duty of this Per- 
manent Deputation is to call extra sessions of Con- 
gress, whenever they may be decreed by the Govern- 
ment, and to receive the certificates of the election 
of President of the Republic, Senators, &c. 

V. The Executive Power is confided for five 
years to a President who must be a Mexican by birth, 
more than 40 years of age, and a resident of the 
Republic at the time of his election. He may declare 
war; dispose of the army as he thinks fit; expel 
unnaturalized foreigners, who are considered danger- 
ous; and name orators from the Council to de- 
fend the opinions of the Government before the 
Chambers. 

The Council of the Government is composed of 
seventeen persons, named by the President, whose 
tenure of office is perpetual. This Council is to aid 
Government in all matters required by these bases. 
It is also charged with the duty of proposing to 



VERA CRUZ. 



121 



Government all regulations or changes that may be 
necessary in every branch of the administration. 

VI. The Judicial Power is deposited in a Su- 
preme Court, in Departmental Tribunals, and others 
already established. There is a perpetual Court 
Martial, chosen by the President. 

VII. The Government of the Departments. 
Each Department is to have an Assembly composed 
of not more than eleven, nor less than seven, each 
member of whom must be 25 years of age, and 
possessed of the qualifications required for a Deputy 
of Congress. Their term of office is four years. 
The powers of these Assemblies are very simple, 
and scarcely amount to more than a species of mu- 
nicipal police; they are subject to the control of 
the President, or of a Governor appointed by the 
President. 

VIII. The Electoral Power is divided into 
sections of 500 inhabitants, for the election of pri- 
mary Juntas, and the citizens will vote by ticket, 
for one elector for every 500 inhabitants. These 
primary electors will name the secondary, who are 
to form the Electoral College of the Department 
in the ratio of one secondary elector for every twenty 
of the primary. 

This Electoral College again will elect the Deputies 
to Congress, and the members of the Departmental 
Assembly; and its members must have an income 
qualification of at least 500 dollars per annum. On 
the 1st of November of the year previous to the ex- 
piration of the Presidential term, each Departmental 
Assembly, will select a person as President for the 
succeeding five years. 



122 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The following statistics of Mexico are from a work lately 
published by B. Meyer, Esq., Secretary to the United States 
Legation in 1841-42. 

Mexico is said to have a frontier of about 5,000 miles on 
the Pacific ; 3,000 miles on the United States and Texas ; and 
above 2,500 miles on the Gulf of Mexico. 

Mr. Burkhardt, an accurate German traveller, rates the 
number of inhabitants of Mexico, as— 

Indians 4,500,000 

mites 1,000,000 

Negroes 6,000 

Mestizos and other castes .... 2,490,000 



7,996,000 



The territory of the Mexican Republic is estimated to con- 
tain an area of 1,650,000 square miles ; the above population, 
therefore, gives about eight inhabitants to the square mile. 
It has also been estimated that of the negroes and indians but 
two per cent, can read or write ; while of the whites twenty 
per cent. 

The exports of precious metals are estimated at 18,500,000 
dollars annual; the other exports, such as cochineal, jalap, 
vanilla, sarsaparilla, and hides, &c, are only judged at the 
value of 1,500,000 doUars. 

The present debt of Mexico is calculated to be 82,000,000 
dollars. 

The estimated population of Vera Cruz, in 1839, was 
254,380; Value of Exports, 4,000,000 dollars. Tampico, in 
1839, Population 100,068; Value of Exports, 7,000,000 
dollars. 



( 123 ) 



TAMPICO. 

The steamer having landed at Vera Cruz the mails 
and passengers for that place and Mexico, proceeds 
to Tampico, where she exchanges mails and pas- 
sengers, and remains as long as may be necessary 
thoroughly to effect shipments ; she then returns to 
Vera Cruz in time to receive the mails and passengers 
from Mexico. 

The steamer does not attempt to cross the bar of 
Tampico, which is a shifting sand-bank, but the 
pilot soon appears in his launch, with twelve or 
fourteen oars' -men of all complexions, from real jet 
to pale straw, and passengers are conveyed by him 
on shore. The distance is about 7 or 8 miles from 
the new town, or Puebla Nuevo de las Tamaulipas. 

There is nothing very remarkable in the River 
Panuco; it is a fine broad stream, but always 
brackish during the dry season, and well stocked 
with turtles and alligators; the country is low on 
either side, and swampy in many places, and in the 
rainy season the borders of the river are entirely 
inundated and of course impassable. Perpetual 
verdure adorns the banks, and extends as far as the 
eye can reach, — but the enjoyment of it is allayed 
by mud, sands, insects, and heat. 

The town has nothing prepossessing in its ap- 
pearance ; it is nearly surrounded by lagoons ; the 
houses are constructed chiefly of canes and mud, 
roofed with the palm-leaf, and the streets not being 



124 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



paved are disagreeably muddy in the rainy season. 
The northerly gales also, with clouds of dust, come 
with such impetuosity, that you would imagine the 
wind would " blow the earth into the sea." There 
are several respectable mercantile establishments 
here, and their proprietors have tolerably comfortable 
dwellings built of stone. 

Passengers must have provided themselves with 
passports, which are examined, as is also the lug- 
gage. Every manufactured article is subject to duty, 
except passengers' personal apparel. Cigars are pro- 
hibited. The money current are Mexican and Spanish 
doubloons and dollars ; there is no bank. 

There is one inn or fonda, kept by Mr. Constant, 
an American ; where the merchants and their clerks 
congregate in the evening for an hour or two only, 
as it is the custom to retire before nine or ten, and 
to rise before five o'clock. 

Provisions are cheap ; tolerable beef can be had at 
2d. per lb. Rain-water is used. 

Horses and mules can be hired at from 1 to 2 
dollars a day. The chief amusements are fowling 
and fishing in boats through the lagoons. There is 
an assembly room where balls and masquerades are 
given, and a theatre, begun some years ago, but yet 
unfinished. 

From 1,000 to 2,000 troops are generally quartered 
in the city. Tampico is about 300 miles from Mexico. 
As the roads are very bad in this country, travelling 
is almost entirely on horses or mules. 

S. L. Jolly, Esq., is the agent to the Royal Mail 
Steamers. 

The heat is very great at Tampico ; but since a 
cut has been made through the land, joining one of 



TAMPXCO. 



125 



the lagoons to the river, by which the tide ebbs and 
flows inside, the health of the place has been much 
improved. 

Passengers for Vera Cruz, Havana, and England 
are conveyed by the steamers to Vera Cruz, where 
receiving those mails and passengers that were pre- 
pared for her arrival, she starts for Havana, and, 
proceeds from thence, after coaling up, to Nassau, 
Bermuda, and England. At Havana she will meet 
the steamer that has brought the mails from England, 
a month later than those she brought to Mexico, and 
receives from her any passengers that may be bound to 
Nassau or Bermuda: also the Company's schooner 
for Honduras. 




THE BAH AM AS 9 — 'NASSAU . 

The Bahamas form a chain of islands of great 
extent, stretching from off the northern coast of St. 
Domingo, to that of East Florida, and situated be- 
tween 21° and 28° of north latitude, and 71° and 81° 
west longitude. They are estimated to be 500 in 
number, but not more than 12 or 14 are inhabited. 
The settled islands are stated to be New Providence, 
Turk's Island, Eleuthera, Exama and its Keys, Har- 
bour Island and its Keys, Crooked Island, Long 
Island, St. Salvador, The Caicos, Watling's Island, 
Hum Key, and Henegua. Some of the largest are 
still uninhabited. St. Salvador was the first land 
seen by Columbus on his memorable voyage, and so 
named because it was discovered within the three 
days, at the expiration of which time, he had pro- 
mised his mutinous crew to return to Spain. At the 



THE BAHAMAS, 



127 



period of his discovery the Bahamas were inhabited 
by a mild and peaceable race of indians, who, seduced 
bv the arts of the Spaniards, were afterwards con- 
signed to perpetual bondage in the mines of St. Do- 
mingo, or sent to act as divers in the pearl fisheries 
of Cumana. In 1629 the English settled in New 
Providence, and held it till 1641, when the Spaniards 
expelled them, but did not make a settlement there 
themselves. It was again colonized by England in 
1666, but ravaged again by the French and Spaniards 
in 1703. Afterwards it became a rendezvous for 
pirates, till in 1718 they were extirpated by the 
English, a regular colonial establishment formed, 
and the seat of Government fixed in the island. 

In 1781 the Bahamas were surrendered to the 
Spaniards; but at the conclusion of the war they 
were once more annexed to the British Empire, to 
which they have ever since belonged. 

These islands are low, flat, and interspersed with 
porous rocks; they rise almost perpendicularly from 
an immense depth of water, and seem to have been 
formed from an accumulation of shells and sand. 
The soil is generally light and sandy, but ornamented 
with an abundance of trees of a great variety of species, 
several of which are admirably adapted for ship- 
building. There are many spots of good soil, used 
for the cultivation of cotton and the rearing of cattle. 
The climate is healthy. There are no rivers or 
streams, but water is easily obtained by digging wells. 

The inhabitants of these islands are chiefly engaged 
in fishing — of turtle or other fish there is great abun- 
dance — and in what is technically called "wrecking;" 
that is, in looking out to save articles from such ships 
as have been unfortunate enough to be wrecked on 



128 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



the many rocks and sands that are profusely scattered 
over the great and little Bahama banks. The small 
craft employed on this service are licensed by the 
governor for the purpose, and a salvage is allowed 
upon all the property recovered. By these boats 
many lives have been saved. Questions of salvage 
are generally referred to the Chamber of Commerce 
at Nassau, and by them a very fair and equitable 
salvage is awarded, even though no agreement had 
been previously made with the " wreckers." 

The chief products of these islands are cotton, 
pimento and salt. A variety of vegetables, as well 
European as tropical, are also cultivated. The Ba- 
hamas are, however, of more importance to Britain 
by commanding the Gulf of Florida, than for their 
trade and commerce. 

Nassau, to which the steamer goes, is situated on 
the north side of the island of New Providence, of 
which it is the capital; it is also the seat of the 
Government. New Providence is about 25 miles 
long by 9 broad, and is situated between longitude 
77° 10' and 77° 38' W., and latitude 25° 3' and 
25° 20' N.; it is considerably in advance in cultiva- 
tion of any of the other islands. 

The houses in Nassau are built of a stone found in 
the island, and are remarkably good; the public 
buildings in particular, such as the Government- 
house, Custom-house, Courts of Justice, are very 
handsome. New barracks have also been erected, 
and there are several churches, public schools, and 
charitable institutions in the town, which are well 
supported. 

The steamer that has been to the Mexican ports, 
will meet at Havana the steamer that has brought 



NASSAU. 



the outward English mails, and receiving from her 
the mails and passengers for Nassau, she proceeds at 
once to that place. Passengers are landed generally 
by the steamers' boats; if by a shore-boat, the usual 
charge is 1 dollar, exclusive of heavy luggage. The 
distance of the steamer from shore is about 3 miles. 

Luggage is not required to be sent for examination 
to the Custom House, nor has there been an instance 
where any articles conveyed in luggage were charged 
duty. Passports are not required on landing, but 
must be obtained when going to a foreign port, espe- 
cially Havana, the charge for which is 8s. Ad. sterling. 
There is no necessity for personal attendance. 

British gold and silver (not bank-notes), Spanish 
and Mexican dollars and doubloons, are the current 
monies. The dollars pass for 4s. 2d. British; Spanish 
doubloons at 16 dollars, and Mexican doubloons at 
15^- dollars each. There is only one bank, and that 
merely local, in New Providence. 

There are four good boarding-houses in Nassau ; 
the charge per day is nearly the same in all, about 2 
dollars, or 8s. Ad. Wines and spirits extra. Saddle- 
horses only, to be had on hire at about 1 dollar, or 
\\ dollar per day. There are no carriages. Except 
the Royal Mail steamers, the Bahamas have no re- 
gular trading packets. Communication with the 
United States and the West India Islands is how- 
ever frequent, though irregular, by means of sailing 
vessels. 

There are four Episcopalian, one Presbyterian, 
three Methodist, and two Baptist places of worship 
in New Providence; there are also several infant and 
other public and private schools. The instruction is 
English. They have a reading and news-room,. a> 

K 



130 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



library, and a small theatre, where amateur per- 
formances are sometimes given. 

We have been favoured with some very carefully 
kept meteorological tables of the climate of Nassau, 
from January 1838 to March 1842, which show an 
average range of temperature of 80° to 90° summer, 
and 60° to 65° winter. 

December to April are generally dry and cool 
months. About the end of May the hot and rainy 
season commences, and continues with intermissions 
till November. 

Medical attendants are many, and in good repute; 
among the first practitioners are Drs. Chipman, 
Black, Clutsam, and Duncome. 

The Governor of the Bahama Islands is George 
Benvenuto Mathew, Esq. 

The Council, which is appointed by the Crown, 
consists of twelve members. 

The House of Assembly is composed of members 
returned by the different islands. Their number is 
between twenty and thirty. The possession of two 
hundred acres of cultivated land, or of property to 
the value of £2,000 currency, is the qualification 
required in a candidate. The electors are all free 
white persons, who have resided twelve months within 
the Government, for six of which they must have 
been householders or freeholders, or in default of 
that, must have paid duties to the amount of £50. 

The Lord Bishop of Jamaica exercises eccle- 
siastical authority within the Bahama Islands. 

There is another communication with Nassau by 
the steamer that has come up by St. Thomas and 
Bermuda, and that proceeds via Nassau to Havana, 
but the mails are not sent by this route, and pas- 



NASSAU. 



133. 



sengers would be several days longer on the voyage 
from England than by the route previously sketched 
in this article. 



Area, — all the Islands and Keys, 4,204 miles. 
Population. 

Males. Females. 

1840 12,023 12,175 

1841 12,230 12,315 

1842 12,676 12,621 

Births. Marriages. Deaths. 

New Providence— 1840 391 65 158 

1841 .... 391 65 158 

1842 .... 141 107 75 

Schools and Scholars. 

Boys. Girls. Infants. 

New Providence— 1840 110 160 401 

„ 1841 .... 71 120 380 

1842 .... 71 120 380 

Salaries of Teachers, paid by Colonial Government, 1842, 
£292 14*. 2d. 

Militia. 

Total, 1840 500 Men 7 Staff 

„ 1841 500 „ .... 7 „ 

„ 1842 554 „ .... 7 „ 

At present there is no Militia on any of the Bahama Is- 
lands except New Providence. 

Shipping. 



Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840.. 693 65,930 3,976 

1841 .. 316 18,763 1,924 

1842.. 427 36,514 2,638 



Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840.. 675 61,249 3,950 

1841 .. 314 19,556 1,999 

1842.. 318 22,563 2,053 



These returns include the coasting trade. 

K 2 



132 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Estimated amount of Coin and Paper in circulation, 1842 : 



0 
11 

0 
0 



d. 

0 



Silver 20,000 

Paper 989 

Gold 50 

Copper 30 

1842 : — 1^ per cent, premium paid for Bills on Great Britain, 
at 30 days sight. 

Wages for Labour. 



Predial 



ial.. £ 





£ 


1840. 

s. 


d. 


£ 


1841. 

s. 


d. 


£ 


1842. 

s. 


d. 


Males, per month 


.2 


0 


0.. 


2 


0 


0, , 


2 


0 


0 


Females, ,, 


1 


0 


0.. 


1 


0 


0. , 


1 


0 


0 


Males, per day . . 


0 


1 


7i 


0 


1 




0 


1 




Females , , 


0 


1 


1.. 


0 


1 




0 


1 


i 




0 


4 


2.. 


0 


4 


2. , 


0 


4 


2 




2 


10 


0.. 


2 


10 


0, . 


2 


10 


0 


Prices of Provisions 


, &c. 















£ 


1840. 
s. 


d. 


£ 


1841. 
s. 


d. 


£ 


1842. 
s. 


d. 


Wheaten Bread, per lb. . 


0 


0 


3 


0 


0 


3 .. 


0 


0 


3 


Beef 


n • • 


0 


0 


9f.. 


0 


0 


9f.< 


0 


0 


n 


Mutton 


ii 


0 


0 


9f.. 


0 


0 


9f.. 


0 


0 


9| 


Pork 


ii 


0 


0 


9f.. 


0 


0 


9|.. 


0 


0 


9J 




per cwt. 
ii 


1 


2 


0 


1 


2 


0 .. 


1 


2 


0 


Coffee 


2 


0 


0 .. 


2 


0 


0 .. 


2 


0 


0 


Tea 


. per lb . . 


0 


6 


0 


0 


6 


0 .. 


0 


6 


0 


Sugar, Cuba, 


per cwt. 


1 


12 


0 .. 


1 


12 


0 .. 


1 


12 


0 


Jamaica, 


1 ii 


2 


10 


0 .. 


2 


10 


0 


2 


10 


0 


Turtle, alive . . 


per lb . . 


0 


0 


o 2 . • 















Amount of Imports and Exports, 1840, 
Imports. . . . £123,773 Exports. . . . £84,099. 
The amount of Compensation for the Slaves in the Bahamas 
was £128,340 7s, 6d. 

Two Newspapers are published at Nassau : — 

The Observer, Wednesday and Saturday, by S. J. Clutsam. 
Established 1837. 

The Royal Gazette, on the same days, by N. M'Leod. Esta- 
blished 1838. 



( 133 ) 




BERMUDA. 

The Bermudas are a cluster of small islands, situated 
between 31° and 32° of N. latitude, and 64° and 65° 
W, longitude, in the Atlantic ocean. They are about 
four hundred in number, but twelve only are inha- 
bited; these are St. George, Hamilton, St. David, 
Cooper, Ireland, Somerset, Nonsuch, and Long and 
Bird Islands. The entire population, by the census 
of 1840, was 8624. The appearance of these little 
creeks and islands is said to be highly romantic. 
None of the islands rise to any great height, but 
they are richly clothed with everlasting verdure. 
They all shoot precipitously out of the water, as if 
the whole group had been one platform of rock, with 
numberless grooves subsequently chisled out in it 
by art. 

These islands extend from north-east to south-west 
in a curved line, bending inward at both extremities 



134 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



so as on each side to enclose sounds or gulfs. The 
whole length of the group, following its sinuosities, 
is about twenty-five miles, while its breadth nowhere 
exceeds three, and in most places not one. The 
surface, according to the latest return, contains 
12,424 acres. With the exception of St. Helena, 
there is not perhaps a spot on the globe so remote 
from any other land; the nearest points being Cape 
Hatteras in North Carolina, distant 580, and At- 
wood's Keys, Bahamas, 645 miles. 

The Bermudas were discovered by Juan Bermudas, 
a Spaniard, who was wrecked there when on a trading 
voyage to Cuba, in 1522. Sir George Somers was 
also wrecked, in 1609, on these islands; but, con- 
structing a ship of the cedar that grew abundantly in 
the islands, and with only one iron bolt in the keel, 
he made his way to Virginia. It is to his indefatigable 
labours in establishing a settlement upon them, that 
Great Britain is now indebted for their possession. 
They are still sometimes called Somers 5 islands. On 
the discovery becoming known, an extraordinary in- 
terest was excited in England in favour of emigration, 
and the usual exaggerations were published. Jourdan, 
who wrote in 1609, proclaims that, "this prodigious 
and enchanted place, which had been shunned as a 
Scylla and Charybdis, and where no one had ever 
landed but against his will, was really the richest, 
healthfulest, and most pleasing land ever man set 
foot on." Strachy, another writer of the same date, 
was less enthusiastic, but he considered the colony, 
on the whole, as very desirable. Some large pieces 
of ambergris had been found, and the remarkable 
size of the spiders was imagined, we know not why, 
to indicate gold. Upon these encouragements several 



BERMUDA. 



attempts were made to colonize; which, however, in 
consequence of the feuds that arose between the go- 
verned and governors, had not the expected success. 
Nevertheless, the islands continued to enjoy a high 
reputation, and, during the period of civil commotion, 
shared with Virginia the resort of distinguished emi- 
grants. They obtained additional lustre when Waller, 
the most popular poet of his age, chose them for the 
theme of his C( Battel of the Summer Islands." He 
celebrates them in the most flattering strains saying, 

" The kind spring which but salutes us here, 
Inhabits there, and courts them all the year; 
Ripe fruits and blossoms on the same trees live, 
At once they promise -what at once they give. 
So sweet the air, so moderate the clime, 
None sickly lives, or dies before his time. 
Heaven sure has kept this spot of earth uncursed, 
To show how all things were created first." 

Mr. Moore, in our own times, has also sung in 
high praise of their beauty : 

" The morn was lovely, every wave was still, 
When the first perfume of a cedar-hill 
Sweetly awak'd us, and with smiling charms, 
The fairy harbour woo'd us to its arms. 
Gently we stole, before the languid wind, 
Through plantain shades, that like an awning twiu'd 
And kiss'd on either side the wanton sails, 
Breathing our welcome to these vernal vales; 
While far reflected o'er the waves serene, 
Each wooded island shed so soft a green, 
That the enamour'd keel, with whispering play, 
Through liquid herbage seem'd to steal its way !" 

And among the many charms which Bermuda has 
for a poetic eye, we cannot for an instant forget that 



136 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



it is the scene of Shakspere's most lovely creation* 
the "Tempest," and the "delicate Ariel." 

The natural caverns, situated at Walsingham, about 
3 miles from the town of St, George's, are curious, 
being large and abounding with specimens of petri- 
faction. But the "lion" of the islands seems to be 
considered a large pond or lake, containing several 
hundreds of fish called groopers. These fish are 
caught with hook and line some distance from the 
shore, in boats, and with the hook in their gills they 
are towed to land and plunged directly into the pond, 
where they are regularly fed until wanted. 

The limited extent and resources of Bermuda made 
it impossible to sustain a competition with the con- 
tinental colonies when they had expanded into their 
vast dimensions; but the great strength of its po- 
sition, standing solitary amid so vast an extent of 
ocean, and on the return-route from the West Indies, 
marked it as a principal naval station. Under this 
view, indeed, it was little considered while the whole 
coast of North America belonged to England; but 
after the United States became hostile and then 
foreign, its possession proved extremely convenient, 
while its occupation by another power would have 
been much the contrary. Washington, towards the 
end of the American war, had formed a plan to seize 
it, with the view of annoying the West India trade. 
The English government therefore carefully fortified 
the several islands, where they kept a naval and 
military force constantly stationed. During the late 
contest it became the principal winter station of the 
navy in these seas, possessing for this purpose many 
advantages over the ports of the northern colonies. 
The benefit then experienced, led to a determination 



BERMUDA. 



137 



to form on Ireland Island a breakwater and other 
works, which might convert it into a haven of the 
first importance. This was begun in 1824, and 
completed in 1837, being carried on by the labour 
of about a thousand deported convicts, The dock- 
yard is in a small island, called Ireland, at the 
north-west extremity of the group. It has been 
covered with works, and its surface almost entirely 
changed, with the view of fitting it for a naval and 
military depot of the first importance. The fortifi- 
cations at St. George's are on a magnificent scale; 
and Bermuda already merits the designation of the 
" Gibraltar of the West." 

Hamilton, the metropolis, and St. George's, are the 
only two towns. The seat of Government was for- 
merly at St. George's; but in 1814, during the 
administration of Sir James Cockburn, it was removed 
to Hamilton, about 9 miles from St. George's. The 
parts of this archipelago are so closely contiguous, 
that they may be considered practically as one; and 
the division is made, not into islands, but into 
parishes. 

The steamers go close to the wharf, at the dock- 
yard at Ireland Island, to coal; and passengers can 
be conveyed to Hamilton, the capital, by ferry boats, 
several times in the day, at a charge of one shilling 
each passenger; the distance being about three miles. 

Luggage is not examined; cigars are the only 
thing that passengers are cautioned against landing, 
without first payment of duty; these are subject to 
a duty of 20 per cent, ad valorem, and a colonial 
duty of eight shillings per mille. The chief articles 
of export are arrow root, which is of superior quality, 
and straw plat for bonnets; on these there is no ex- 



138 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



port duty. British and Spanish coin pass current; 
the latter at 4s. 2d. the dollar, or 65s. the doubloon. 
There is no bank in the colony; the commissary 
regulates the exchange, having the control of money 
bills to a large extent. 

Owing to the few travellers visiting these islands 
before the West India steamers began to call, hotels 
were conducted on a very moderate scale; but lately 
there has been an evident improvement, and efforts 
are now making to encrease their comforts. There 
are two hotels at Hamilton, situated a short distance 
from the landing-place, and one at St. George's The 
charge in these is about 7s. to 8s. per day, exclusive 
of wines. Rain-water is generally used here, being 
saved in tanks under the houses; springs are nu- 
merous throughout the islands, but the water is 
brackish. 

The roads of the colony are excellent; and four- 
wheeled carriages, gigs, and saddle-horses can be 
obtained at moderate prices. But excursions are 
more frequently made by boats, the scenery from 
island to island being remarkably beautiful. The 
Bermudian boats are peculiar in their appearance, 
but remarkably safe and powerful, and suited to the 
rough seas they sometimes encounter. 

Transient passengers are not required to produce 
passports; but residents, on leaving, are obliged to 
have a pass from the secretary's office. 

MAILS FROM ENGLAND via HALIFAX. 

December, January, February, and March. — One mail each 
month. Leaves Liverpool on the 4th — due at Halifax on 
the 16th — due at Bermuda on the 26th. 



BERMUDA. 



139 



April, May, June, July, August, September, October, and 
November. — Two mails each month. The first leaves 
Liverpool on the 4th — due at Halifax on the 16th — due at 
Bermuda on the 26th. The second leaves Liverpool on 
the 19th — due at Halifax on the 1st of the following 
month — due at Bermuda on the 10th. 

This communication is by regular mail-boat; 
passage fare £10. The mail-boats remain at Ber- 
muda four days for the return mail. The steamers 
are expected to leave Halifax for Liverpool on the 
3rd and 18th of each summer month, and on the 3rd 
of the month only during the winter. With New 
York there is very frequent communication; about 
£6 being the charge for the best-cabin accom- 
modation. 

There are nine parish churches, one Presbyterian, 
and four Wesleyan chapels throughout the islands. 
Schools are numerous, both for infants and adults; 
and schoolmasters from England are in general re- 
quest, and handsome emoluments are held out to 
them. There are also libraries and news rooms 
supported by subscribers. 

The laws of Bermuda are enacted by the Governor 
and Council, and the House of Assembly, subject to 
the approval and confirmation of the Government at 
home. A detachment of engineers and one regiment 
of the line are generally stationed at Ireland Island. 

On an average of three years (1837 to 1839), the 
mean temperature out of doors, by a register ther- 
mometer, was 68° 32' ; the highest in summer being 
87°, and lowest in winter 48°. The winter com- 
mences in December and ends in March, with occa- 
sional rains only. The dews are not considered 
pernicious. 



140 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



It is much to be regretted that the inhabitants of 
Bermuda do not make better use of their internal 
resources. This neglect — for it is said that there 
was only one plough in the whole colony in 1827 — - 
may be ascribed to the facility with which supplies 
are received from America, and also to the great 
varieties of excellent fish with which the shores 
abound, withdrawing the attention of numbers of the 
lower orders from the cultivation of the soil. The 
soil is very fertile, and the esculent plants and roots 
of Europe, as well as the citron, sour orange, lemon, 
and lime grow spontaneously in great luxuriance, and 
peaches, and musk melons grow to perfection in the 
early summer season. The climate is adapted for 
the grape, but the inhabitants pay no attention 
to this fruit. Medical plants, such as castor, aloe, 
and jalap, grow to great perfection without culture. 
" Within the last year," says the writer of the Ber- 
muda Almanac for 1842, "an attempt was made to 
revive the culture of the medicinal aloe, which we 
are glad to state has given promise of success; 150 
pounds weight were manufactured. It is understood 
that this article in its manufactured state, is worth, 
in London, £50 sterling for 100 pounds' weight." 

Almost all the occupiers of land sow a small 
quantity of barley; but the novel manner of reaping, 
gives rather an unfavourable idea of the state of 
agriculture in that quarter. An old woman, furnished 
with a basket and a pair of scissors cuts off the heads 
of the grain, leaving the stalk erect, which is after- 
wards converted into bonnets. Arrow-root, as before 
noticed, is the chief article of export, and this has 
encreased from the value of £888, in 1831, to 
£5,833, in 1841. 



BERMUDA. 



141 



It is but justice, however, to say that laudable 
exertions are now being made to improve the re- 
sources of these interesting islands by encouraging 
emigration. We have received a document, dated 
27 January, 1843, published at the Royal Gazette 
office, Bermuda, setting forth the capabilities of the 
soil, and the advantages possessed by these islands 
for the profitable employment of the labourer and 
artizan. 

One of the arrangements made by the Legislature 
for the protection of the emigrant is the following: 
"As an encouragement to persons inclined to emi- 
grate to Bermuda, and to enable them to make the 
best arrangements on their first arrival, the Legis- 
lature have granted fourteen days' subsistence-money 
to persons (not exceeding 100 in one year) arriving 
in the island, with a voucher shewing them to have 
emigrated to Bermuda with the approbation of the 
Commissioners of Emigration." 



Population, &c. 

1840. 

Males. Females. 

Nine parishes. 12,424 acres. Whites 1,598 2,460 

Coloured.. .. 1,953 2,613 

Aliens and Strangers resident 87 

Population to square mile 431 

,, employed in Agriculture 1,103 

,, ,, Manufacture 506 

,, ,, Commerce 608 

Births. Marriages. Deaths. 

1840 266 64 166 

1841 297 57 161 

1842 271 67 186 



142 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



15 Schools, 1840. 
20 „ 1841. 
19 „ 1842. 



Schools and Scholars. 

Males 302. 

410. 
371. 



Females. 



264 
322 
320 



Expense in 1842, £601 6s. paid chiefly by Colonial grant. 
21 Private Schools. 



Inwards. 

1840.. 
1841.. 
1842.. 



Ships. 

. 129 
. 128 
.177 



Tons. 

12,517 
12,672 
19,966 



Shipping. 

Men. Outwards. 

816 
819 
1,175 



Ships. 

1840.... 138 
1841 .... 138 
1842.... 176 



Tons. 

13,719 
13,269 
18,858 



Men. 

891 
875 
1,136 



Crops and Uncultivated Land. 
9 Parishes, — in Acres, 1840. 
Total cultivated, 537£. Ditto, Uncultivated 10,648. 

Arrow Root. Potatoes. Bar. & Oats. Gard. Veg. 

187 156f 16* 107i 
1841 and 1842 not given. 

Quantities of Produce in 1840. 



Onions. 



Pasture. 

l,238f 



lbs. 

265,800 



per 100 lbs. 

8s. 6d. 



lbs. 

93,565 



bush. 

18,190 



bush. 

208 



lbs. 

180,650 



Prices of Produce. 

per lb. per bush, per bush. per lb. 

Is. 4s. 7d. 3s. 6d. lid. 
Prices of Provisions. 









1840. 






1S41. 






1S42. 








£ 


s. 


d. 


£ 




d. 


£ 


s. 


d. 


Wheaten Bread, per lb. , 


.0 


0 


3.. 


..0 


0 


3.. 


..0 


0 


3 


Beef .... 




.0 


0 


8.. 


..0 


0 


9.. 


..0 


0 


8 






.0 


0 


9.. 


..0 


0 


9.. 


..0 


0 


8 


Pork .... 




.0 


0 


8.. 


..0 


0 


8.. 


..0 


0 


8 






. 1 


2 


0.. 


.. 1 


2 


0.. 


.. 1 


2 


0 


Coffee .... 




.3 


0 


0.. 


..3 


0 


0.. 


..3 


0 


0 


Tea 




.0 


6 


0.. 


..0 


6 


0.. 


..0 


6 


0 






.1 


18 


0.. 


..1 


12 


0.. 


.. 1 


12 


0 



BERMUDA. 



143 



Wages for Labour, 

£ s. <L s. d. i s. d. 

Domestic, per day 0 2 0 0 2 0....0 2 0 

Predial.. „ 0 2 3....0 2 6....0 2 6 

Trades.. ,, 0 5 0 0 5 0.. ..0 5 0 

Stock, 1840. 

Horses, 218. Horned Cattle, 1,799. Sheep, 70. Goats, 204. 

The value of the collective Imports and Exports of the 
Bermudas in 1840, was 

Imports £130,800 Exports £32,231 

The amount of Slave Compensation paid to the Proprietors, 
was £'128,340 7s. 6d. 

Newspapers. 

The Royal Gazette, published at Hamilton on Tuesdays, by 
D. M'Phee Lee. Established 1830. 

The Bermudian, published on Saturdays, by A. and J. Wash- 
ington. Established 1834. 



( 144 ) 




FAX ET JUSTITIA. 



ST. VINCENT, 

So called by Columbus, who discovered it on the 
23rd of January, 1498, the day dedicated to St. 
Vincent in the Romish calender. 

It lies in 13° 10' latitude: and 61° 30' longitude. 
It is 24 miles long and 18 broad, and contains about 
84,000 acres comprised in five parishes. 

It does not appear that the Spaniards made any 
settlement on this island; they left it to the Caribbees 
who were very numerous and warlike. Charles I. 
however, included St. Vincent, together with Domi- 
nica and other islands, in a patent granted to the 
Earl of Carlisle; and again Charles II. in 1672, 
included this island with Barbadoes, St. Lucia and 
Dominica in the patent constituting Lord Wil- 
loughby Governor. Even then there was no direct 
settlement on the island. And again in 1723 George 
I. granted it to the Duke of Montague who made a 



ST. VINCENT. 



145 



feeble attempt at possession, and failed; and by the 
treaty of Aix la Chapelle in 1 748 it was declared 
neutral, and the native race left in possession. The 
French and English subsequently contested for the 
possession of the island, but ultimately by the treaty 
of Paris, signed the 10th of February 1763, this 
island, together with Dominica and Tobago, were 
assigned to Great Britain in full and perpetual sove- 
reignty, the aborigines not being once mentioned 
in the transaction. By letters-patent of 9th of April 
1764, representative assemblies were granted to these 
ceded islands, and the contest consequent upon the 
attempt afterwards made to impose the 4 J per cent, 
duties has been already noticed in the account of 
Grenada p. 33. 

In St. Vincent a separate Legislative Assembly 
was convened as early as 1767, the first act in the 
printed collection bearing date 11th of July in that 
year. 

On the 19th of June 1779, St. Vincent was captured 
by a French force, but was restored to the dominion 
of Great Britain by the pacification of 1783. 

In 1795 an insurrection of the Caribbees in con- 
junction with the French settlers, took place in this 
island, which being seconded by a French force, was 
not suppressed till after a severe struggle. But in 
1796 the enemy was dislodged by the British, and 
tranquillity restored. The Caribbees, however, were 
not allowed by our Government to remain, but were 
removed to the island of Rattan, in the bay of Hon- 
duras. 

Kingstown, the capital of St. Vincent, is situated 
on the S.W. side of the islands, the approach to 
which is very beautiful, the town stretching along 

L 



146 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



the sea and the mountains gradually rising behind 
in the form of an amphitheatre to a considerable 
height. The mountains of St. Vincent are bold, 
sharp, and abrupt in their terminations, with deep 
intervening romantic glens, and bound by a lofty and 
rocky coast. The connected chain of high mountains 
runs from N. to S. clothed with immense trees, 
breaking into smaller and less elevated masses towards 
the sea, and intersected by deep ravines in the interior, 
which gradually widen on the approach to the shore, 
and become vallies capable of cultivation, as they 
are generally supplied with running water : this is the 
character of the north-western side of the island. 
On the north-east the surface is more level and less 
broken, and there is a large tract of land at the base 
of the Souffriere mountain gradually declining towards 
the sea, which forms an extensive plain of upwards 
of 6,000 acres, and is the most productive land in 
the colony. 

The Souffriere, or Sulphur Hill, in the north, is 
the most remarkable object in the island. It is a 
volcanic mountain, about 3,000 feet high. This ce- 
lebrated volcano is the grandest scene in the West 
Indies. The lofty summit is only to be seen at in- 
tervals between the rolling clouds, and the sides are 
furrowed with streams of lava. 

Two irruptions are recorded, — one in 1718, by 
Humbolt, and another in 1812. Of the latter the 
following description is given in Shepherd's History 
of the island. 

"To those who have not visited this remarkable 
spot a short description of it as it previously stood 
is necessary, the better to understand the account 
that follows: — 



ST. VINCENT. 



147 



At about 2,000 feet from the level of the sea, on 
the south side of the mountain, and rather more than 
two-thirds of its height, opens a circular chasm, 
somewhat exceeding half a mile in diameter, and 
between 400 or 500 feet in depth: exactly in the 
centre of this capacious bowl rose a conical hill, about 
260 or 300 feet in height, and about 200 in diameter, 
richly covered with shrubs, brushwood, and vines 
about half-way up, and for the remainder powdered 
over with virgin sulphur to the top. From the fis- 
sures in the cone, and interstices of the rocks, a thin 
white smoke was constantly emitted, occasionally 
tinged with a slight bluish flame. The precipitous 
sides of this magnificent amphitheatre were fringed 
with various evergreens and aromatic shrubs, flowers, 
and many alpine plants. On the north and south 
sides of the base of the cone were two pieces of 
water, one perfectly pure and tasteless, the other 
strongly impregnated with sulphur and alum. This 
lonely and beautiful spot was rendered more enchant- 
ing by the singularly melodious notes of a bird, an 
inhabitant of these upper solitudes, and altogether 
unknown to the other parts of the island. 

Nearly a century had now elapsed since the last 
convulsion of the mountain, or since any other ele- 
ments had disturbed the serenity of this wilderness, 
than those which are common to the tropical tempest. 
But just as the plantation-bells rang twelve at noon, 
on Monday the 2 7th, an abrupt and dreadful crash 
from the mountain, with a severe concussion of the 
earth, and tremulous noise in the air, alarmed all 
around it. The resurrection of this fiery furnace was 
proclaimed in a moment, by a vast column of thick 
black rop smoke, like that issuing from the furnace 

l 2 



148 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



of an immense glass-house. The same awful scene 
presented itself on Tuesday and Wednesday, still 
gathering more thick and terrific for miles around 
the dismal and half-obscured mountain. 

On Thursday the memorable 30th of April, the 
reflection of the rising sun on this majestic body of 
curling vapour was sublime beyond imagination : any 
comparison of the glaciers of the Andes, or Cor- 
dilleras with it, can but feebly convey an idea of 
the fleecy whiteness and brilliancy of this column of 
intermingled and wreathed smoke and clouds: it 
afterwards assumed a more sulphureous cast, like 
what we call thunder-clouds, and in the course of 
the day, a ferruginous and sanguine appearance, with 
much livelier action in the ascent, a more extensive 
dilation, as if almost freed from every obstruction: 
in the afternoon the noise was incessant, and resem- 
bled the approach of thunder still nearer and nearer, 
with a vibration that affected the feelings and hear- 
ing: but as yet there was no convulsive motion, or 
sensible earthquake. Terror and consternation now 
seized all beholders. The negroes became confused, 
and forsook their work; the birds fell to the ground 
overpowered with showers of favilla, unable to keep 
themselves on the wing; the cattle were starving 
from want of food, as not a blade of grass or a leaf 
was now to be found; the sea was much discoloured, 
but in no wise uncommonly agitated; and, it is re- 
markable that, throughout the whole of this violent 
disturbance of the earth, it continued quite passive, 
and did not at any time sympathize with the agitation 
of the land. About four p.m. the noise became 
alarming, and just before sun-set the clouds reflected 
a bright copper-colour, suffused with fire. Scarcely 



ST. VINCENT. 



149 



had the day closed when the flames at length burst 
pyramidically from the crater, through the mass of 
smoke; the rolling of the thunder became more awful 
and deafening; electric flashes quickly succeeded, 
attended with loud claps ; and now, indeed, the hurly- 
burly began. 

Shortly after 7 p.m. the mighty cauldron was seen 
to simmer, and the ebullition of lava to break out on 
the N.W. side. This, immediately after boiling 
over the orifice and flowing a short way, was opposed 
by the acclivity of a higher point of land, over which 
it was impelled by the immense tide of liquefied fire 
that drove it on, forming the figure V in grand illu- 
mination. Sometimes when the ebullition slackened, 
or was insufficient to urge it over the obstructing hill, 
it recoiled back, like a refluent billow from the rock, 
and then again rushed forward, impelled by fresh 
supplies, and scaling every obstacle, carrying rocks 
and woods together, in its course down the slope of 
the mountain, until it precipitated itself down some 
vast ravine, concealed from our sight by the inter- 
vening ridges of Morne Ronde. Vast globular bodies 
of fire were seen projected from the fiery furnace, 
and bursting, fell back into it, or over it, on the 
surrounding bushes, which were instantly set in 
flames. About four hours from the lava's boiling 
over the centre, it reached the sea, as we could ob- 
serve from the reflection of the fire, and the electric 
flashes attending it. About half-past one, another 
stream of lava was seen descending to the eastward, 
toward Rabacca. The thundering noise of the moun- 
tain, and the vibration of sound that had been so 
formidable hitherto, now mingled in the sullen mo- 
notonous roar of the rolling lava, became so terrible, 



150 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



that dismay was almost turned into despair. At this 
time the first earthquake was felt: this was followed 
by showers of cinders, that fell with the hissing 
noise of hail during two hours. This dreadful rain 
of stones and fire lasted upwards of an hour, and 
was again succeeded by cinders from three till six 
o'clock in the morning. Earthquake followed earth- 
quake almost momentarily, or rather the whole of 
this part of the island was in a state of continued 
oscillation; not agitated by shocks, vertical or hori- 
zontal, but undulated, like water shaken in a bowl. 

The break of day, if such it could be called, was 
truly terrific. Day-light only was visible at eight 
o'clock, and the birth of May dawned like the day 
of judgment ; a chaotic gloom enveloped the mountain, 
and an impenetrable haze hung over the sea, with 
black sluggish clouds of a sulphureous cast. The 
whole island was covered with favilla or ash-coloured 
dust, cinders, scoriae, and broken masses of volcanic 
matter. It was not until the afternoon, that the 
muttering noise of the mountain sank gradually into 
a solemn yet suspicious silence. Such were the 
particulars of this sublime and tremendous scene; 
from the commencement to catastrophe. To describe 
the effects would be a task truly distressing. 

It subsequently appeared, that the damage done 
to the estates was inconsiderable, when compared to 
the excess of the volcano; the course of Rabacca 
River was filled up with lava and ashes, and the land 
covered in some places from six to twelve inches 
deep with cinders. One white man and about forty 
or fifty negroes lost their lives. 

The whole appearance of the mountain had changed ; 
and the ascent, where it had been most difficult, ren- 



ST. VINCENT. 



151 



dered plain and easy, by filling up of ravines, and 
swelling of precipices. The conical mount had been 
destroyed, and an immense lake of boiling water 
supplied its place : from this lake vast quantities of 
black sand were perpetually thrown up; and, on the 
S.W. side, a large furnace constantly threw up red- 
hot stones. The beds of the Wallihou and Rabacca 
Rivers were completely levelled, and appeared, almost 
throughout the whole of their respective courses, to 
be changed into volcanoes, abounding in fissures, 
from which flame, smoke, and sulphur were con- 
stantly emitted. 

It is reported that for four hours, Barbadoes, 80 
miles distant, was obscured in nearly total darkness 
with the dense and unceasing fall of favilla. This 
lay on the ground the depth of several inches, and 
proved a most valuable fertilizing mould to the then 
almost worn out island. An upper current of air, 
counter to the trade-wind, must have been the means 
of conveying the favilla to Barbadoes. 

St. Vincent is within range of the hurricanes; one, 
in 1831, was very disastrous. 

This island once possessed a public establishment 
of great repute, called the Botanic Garden, situate 
about a mile from Kingstown. It consisted of about 
30 acres, wherein were to be found many species of 
the vegetable world, which the hand of nature had 
bestowed, as well as many valuable exotics from the 
East Indies and South iVmerica. Here the nutmeg, 
clove, and cinnamon flourished; and some of the 
bread-fruit plants, brought by Captain Bligh, still 
remain. For a long time the Government main- 
tained a superintendent, at a liberal salary, and a 
number of negroes were allowed to carry on the cul- 



152 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



tivation; but this beautiful spot has felt the effects 
of modern economy and retrenchment; a great num- 
ber of the plants have been removed to Trinidad, 
the allowances from Government are discontinued, 
a small part of the ground has been surrendered to 
the colony, for the purpose of establishing a residence 
for the Governor, and the remainder is in a state of 
neglect and desolation. 

But there are still extant in St. Vincent some fine 
specimens of the valuable exotics of the east; and 
fortunately, several plants of the nutmeg trees had 
been previously distributed through the island, and 
promise in a few years to become abundant; in quality 
this spice is said to be quite equal to that brought 
from the east. It is very much to be regretted that 
so valuable an establishment as this should be suffered 
to decline. But we hope the inhabitants of St. Vin- 
cent will revive it, and take their part in the endea- 
vour after agricultural and horticultural improvement, 
now becoming general among the West India colonies. 

In August, 1831, St. Vincent, St. Lucia, and 
Barbadoes, were visited with a terrific hurricane, 
which tore up the trees, destroyed the church and 
other houses, and did most serious damage. 

There are two mineral springs, called the "Bel- 
leair," and the " Marriaqua Spa," but of which no 
accurate analysis has yet been obtained; the first is 
about two miles, the latter ten or eleven miles from 
Kingstown, on the windward or eastern part of the 
island. These springs are different in their nature— 
the first partaking chiefly of saline — the other of 
chalybeate properties; but both are much esteemed 
for their refreshing and medicinal effects. The Bel- 
leair Spa is easy of access by a good road; that at 



ST. VINCENT. 



153 



Marriaqua is more difficult, being situated in the 
interior of the island, remote from the public highway 
or from any extensive settlement or plantation. 

Passengers are landed here generally by the 
steamers' boats. There is no detention or exami- 
nation of luggage. Dollars at 4s. 2d., and English 
money are current. 

There are two hotels close to the landing-place, 
respectably conducted; the charges are moderate, 
the accommodation good, and water excellent. 

Persons with letters of introduction visiting the 
island are received with kindness, and hospitably 
entertained by the residents. Passports are not 
required on landing; but when leaving for a foreign 
country they are taken. 

There are four Wesley an chapels in the island; 
one Episcopal church, and the Presbyterians and 
Catholics have also places of worship. Schools for 
children are attached to the two first. These schools 
only teach the rudiments of learning. There is a 
lamentable deficiency of a higher class of schools. 
Three newspapers are published on alternate days in 
each week; but the inhabitants have not yet esta- 
blished either library or public news-room. About 
400 of the military are stationed here. 

The Government consists of a Lieutenant-Governor, 
Council, and House of Assembly; these constitute a 
combined legislative body. In the frame of its 
Government and the administration of executive 
justice, St. Vincent seems to differ in no respect 
from Grenada. 

The Council consists of twelve members, the 
Assembly of seventeen. 

The average range of the thermometer in the 



154 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



shade is 80° to 81°. The coolest months are from 
November to April, and the warmest from May to 
October. The latter half-year is the rainy season. 
The uniformity of temperature, and the absence of 
stagnant or marshy lands, render the island very 
healthy. 

Drs. Melville and Arundell in the town, and 
Chappin and Huggins in the country, are the medical 
men in most repute. James Colquhoun, Esq., St. 
James's Place, London, is the Agent for the colony 
in England. 



Births. Marriages. Deaths. 

1842 761 450 249 

These are noted " as taken from lists furnished of Baptisms, 
Marriages, and Deaths, and of course form a very imperfect 
return." 

Shipping. 

Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1841 .. 306 23,713 2,125 j 1841 .. 360 24,373 2,407 

1842 .. 409 27,079 2,807 | 1842 .. 382 24,382 2,407 

Militia. 



Total, 1841 770 

„ 1842 676 

The Adjutants receive, per Annum. . . . £114 11 8 
Armourer 41 13 4 

Total £156 5 0 



1841. The denomination of Currency has been abolished, 
and Sterling Money substituted in lieu. 



ST. VINCENT. 



155 



Schools and Scholars. 

10 Schools, 1842. Males. . 454 Females. . 376 Total. . 830 
Other Scholars, not sexed 324 

1,154 

Total Expense iT831 13 4 

Paid chiefly by the Colonial Government, and a small part by 
the Parents. The following note is by the Rector of Char- 
lotte Parish : — " Unless some means be devised for continuing 
the Schools in Charlotte, they must cease very shortly. Vo- 
luntary contributions are out of the question." 

Mico Charity, 2 Schools, 1840. Males ..51 Females ..44 
Abandoned in 1841. 

„ 1 School, 1840. Males 
1841. 
1842. 

Cost, £i0 per Year 

Moravians, 1 School, ) l * i0 - Mate 94 Females. . 80 
Infant System .... \\*% » £J 421 

Xote. — The Master of the Whim School (Wesley an) receives 
no stipend, either from the Lord Bishop or the Colony. The 
School has been in operation about six months. 



..39 Females ..16 
..32 ,, ..26 

..28 ,, ..27 



Average Prices of Provisions. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Wheaten Bread, per 14 ozs.O 0 4 0 0 4 0 0 6 



Beef ,, ..0 0 9....0 0 9. . . . 0 0 9 

Mutton ,, ..0 1 0....0 1 0....0 1 0 

Pork M ..0 0 8....0 0 8....0 0 8 

Rice percwt..l 12 0. . . . 1 12 0. . . . 1 12 0 

Coffee per lb. ..0 2 0....0 2 0. . . . 0 2 0 

Tea „ ..0 7 0....0 7 0....0 8 0 

Sugar „ ..0 1 0.. ..0 1 0. . . . 0 1 0 



156 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Wages for Labour. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. <£ s. d. 

Domestic, per month 1 12 0..1 12 0..1 12 0 

Predial, per day, house & ground 0 1 0..0 0 8..0 0 8 
Trades, „ 0 2 0..0 1 6 0 2 6 

Number of Mills employed in Manufacture of Sugar, Molasses, 
and Rum. 

Water. Wind. Cattle. Steam. 

1840. 26 28 3 20 

1841. 26 24 3 21 

1842. 26 20 6 21 

Amount of Collective Imports and Exports, 1840, 

Imports £173,066 Exports £202,109 

Amount of Slave Compensation paid to St. Vincent was 
£592,508 18s. Od. 

Newspapers, published at Kingstown. 

The Royal Gazette, on Saturday, by John Drape. Esta- 
blished 1784. 

Thursday's Gazette, Thursday, by Thomas Le Gall. Esta- 
blished 1825. 



( 157 ) 




3TATI0 HAVD MAXEFIDA CARINIS. 



ST. LUCIA, 



Is situated between 13° and 14° X. lat. ; and 59^ 
and 60y° W. long. The soil is fertile. The finest 
part of the island is the S.W. quarter, which is well 
cultivated and thickly inhabited. 

This island was discovered on St. Lucia's day. It 
was first settled by the English in 1639; and, after 
various changes between the French and English, 
was finally ceded to Great Britian in 1814. During 
these hostile takings and retakings, many of the in- 
habitants died from the effects of disease and famine, 
as well as from war. St. Lucia is at present a 
British colony in little more than the name. Pro- 
perty is chiefly in the hands of French settlers, who 
compose the principal portion of the society. The 
people are French in language, manners and feelings, 
and little progress has yet been made in amalgamat- 
ing the two nations. 



158 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The appearance of this island from the sea is very 
beautiful. It is composed of high and broken land, 
covered with forests, some of which are scarcely pe- 
netrable. Many of the mountains are so steep that 
no animal can ascend them, and others rise like pin- 
nacles to an astonishing height. Some have broader 
bases, covered with wood to their summits, which 
terminate in the craters of exhausted volcanoes. Of 
the latter description is the Sulphur Hill, on the 
south-west end of the island; the crater of which 
lies on an eminence between two mountains. 

On the first view of this volcano from about half- 
way up one of these mountains, it appears like a 
vast lime-pit, and is occasionally covered with smoke, 
which forms a white cloud in the atmosphere. From 
the same eminence the working of the fire and boil- 
ing of the water could formerly be heard. The con- 
vulsions of the mountain have heretofore occasioned 
frequent earthquakes in the island; nevertheless there 
are several excellent plantations in its neighbourhood. 

A naval officer thus describes his visit to this re- 
markable scene : As this crater is different from any 
described, you must imagine to yourself a vast surface 
of chalk and native sulphur, of about a quarter of a 
mile in length and about half that breadth, lying be- 
tween two prodigious hills, half of whose sides are 
composed of the same materials, the woods, and 
precipices. In this plain are seven openings, three 
raging with flames, and four filled either with a black 
bituminous water, or a white water of alum, of such 
a consistency as to crack like boiling pitch; and of 
such a heat, that no person can put his hands within 
a foot of any part. All these craters are covered 
with clouds of sulphureous smoke, now shooting up 



ST. LITCIA. 



159 



in pyramids, now expanding over the surface of the 
great crater. Add to this, our approaching nearer 
and nearer to the noise which we had before heard 
at a distance, and that there was only myself and 
servant, accompanied by one poor negro, you will be 
little surprised that I at first refused to venture on 
this Tartarean gulf. At last, however, I did venture, 
and closely examined the whole, though often in no 
small danger of suffocation, by the rolling back of 
the smoke from the eddies of the wind. This crater 
is so unsteady, that in some places you are obliged 
to step from one stone to another; for were you to 
step on the plain, you would instantly fall in, and 
perhaps be no more heard of; it giving way, in most 
places, to your stick, which, thrust into the earth, is 
followed by a stream of smoke. 

This volcano is a Solfatara, (a Sovffriere, as the 
French call it,) having no metal or lava. The sul- 
phur is exceedingly pure, crystalized like marcasites, 
and so potent as to scent the air to an intolerable 
degree five miles distant. I threw some stones into 
the fiery gulf, which seemed to rage most violently, 
but they were not thrown back again, though the 
fire seemed yet to want sufficient vent. But this was 
always accompanied with a great torrent of smoke. 
The flames were fierce beyond imagination — not un- 
dulating like common fire, but resembling more the 
broken sparks that you generally see from fire-works. 
We shouted by our negro's direction, which produced 
a singular effect, making the boiling water rise to 
considerably more than its usual height, which I 
take to be at least six feet. The pure stream, I first 
mentioned, runs unadulterated through the crater; 
and a slow green vitriolic styx creeps with an intole- 



160 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



rable stench through the other side. The circum- 
stance of fire and water united exists indeed in all 
mountains of this nature, but are in none of our 
European ones so visibly perceived in their eruptions. 

Mr. Coleridge thus describes St. Lucia from the 
sea: — 

"The first approach to this island from the south- 
ward offers a striking combination of various scenery. 
The two rocks, which the gods call Pitons, and men 
Sugar Loaves, on the south-west, rise perpendicu- 
larly out of the sea, and shoot up, in cones, to a 
great height. These rocks, which are feathered from 
the clouds to the waves with evergreen foliage, stand 
like the Pillars of Hercules, on either side of the en- 
trance into a small but deep and beautiful bay. A 
pretty little village, or plantation, appears at the 
bottom of the cove; the sandy beach stretches like a 
line of silver round the blue water, and the cane- 
fields form a broad belt of vivid green in the back 
ground. Behind this the mountains, which extend 
north and south throughout the island, rise in the 
most fantastic shapes. The clouds which, within 
the tropics, are infallibly attracted by any woody 
eminences, contribute greatly to the wildness of the 
scene: here, at times, they are so dense as to bury 
the mountains in darkness : at other times they float 
transparently, like a silken veil; frequently the flaws 
from the gulleys perforate the vapours and make 
apertures in the smoky mass; and then again the 
wind and the sun will raise the whole majestically 
upward, like the curtain of a gorgeous theatre." 

Castries, the capital, is on the western side of the 
island; it lies at the bottom of a deep irregularly- 
formed harbour. It is one of the best harbours in 



ST. LUCIA. 



161 



the windward islands, having deep water and good 
anchorage ground. The steamer's boat will land you. 
The town appears almost deserted; the buildings are 
detached, they are chiefly composed of wood that 
had been warped and disfigured by the climate, and 
there are but few signs of active industry in the 
streets. 

The Government-house in Castries stands on a 
high hill above the town, and the road to it is a 
zigzag of acute angles, intersected by brick trenches 
for carrying off the water; for it rains nine months 
out of the twelve at St. Lucia. From the summit 
of this hill on a clear night, the traveller has said, 

"I never saw heaven so close before. Not only 
Venus and Sirius, and the glorious Cross of our Faith 
in the south, and ' Charlemaine amongst the starris 
seaven,' low in the north, shone like segments of 
the moon; but hosts of other luminaries, of lesser 
magnitude, flung each his particular shaft of splen- 
dour on the tranquil and shadowy sea. As I gazed, 
the air burst into atoms of green fire before my face, 
and in an instant they were gone. I turned round 
and saw all the woods upon the mountains illuminated 
with ten thousands of flaming torches [fire-flies and 
beetles] moving in every direction, now rising, now 
falling, vanishing here, re-appearing there, converg- 
ing to a globe, and dispersing in spangles. No man 
can conceive from dry description alone the magical 
beauty of these glorious creatures." 

The laws in force here at the time preceding the 
last cession to France still prevail, except so far as 
they have been altered by orders in council, to which 
St. Lucia, as a colony acquired by conquest, is still 
subject. With this exception, therefore, it is go- 



162 



THE "WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



verned by the ancient law of France, as it existed 
before the promulgation of the code Napoleon. The 
old laws proceed from two very different sources or au- 
thorities; some were enacted by the kings of France, 
or government at home, and others by the governor 
and intendant jointly — the local authorities. These 
laws will be found in the collection entitled c The 
Code of Martinique/ printed in five vols. All the 
papers, registers, and archives, of St. Lucia, were 
burnt at the fire that destroyed Castries, in 1790. 
The supreme court of this island is now constituted 
according to the provisions of the order in council 
of the 20th of June, 1831. 



Population, 
whites. coloured. 

Males. Females. Males. Females. Total. 



1840 982 820 

1841 .... 971.. .. 819.. .. 

1842 .... 920.. .. 821.. 



9,629.. ..11,226 22,657 

10,647.. ..12,386.. .... 24,828 

11,593.. ..13,496 26,830 



1840, Aliens and Strangers 446. 

1841, „ 308. 

1842, ,, 383. 

Births. Marriages. Deaths. 

1840 553 83 171 

1841 619 78 197 

1842 757 146 248 

Schools and Scholars. 

1840. 7 Schools, Males.. 274 Females.. 50 Total. . 324. 

1841. „ „ 398 „ 76 „ 474. 

1842. „ „ 313 „ 58 ,, 371. 

Expense in 1842, Mico Charity, £1,181 15s. 2|d. 
No Private Schools. 



ST. LUCIA. 



163 



Inwards. Ships. 

1840.. ..245 
1841.. ..246 
1842.. ..253 



Tons. 

11,726 
12,071 
13,848 



Shipping. 

Outwards. 

1840.. 
1841.. 



Men. 

1,555 
1,599 
1,641 



1842.. 



Snips. 

.256 
.249 
. 257 



Tons. 

11,771 
12,225 
13,883 



Men. 

1,611 
1,693 
1,657 



Wages fob. Labour. 



1840. 
£ s. 

Domestic, per month .... 1 10 

Predial.. „ 1 10 

Trades.. „ 2 10 



1841. 



d. 

0.. 
0.. 
0.. 



.1 12 
.1 10 
.2 10 



d. 

0.. 
0.. 
0.. 



1842. 

£ s. d. 

.. 1 4 0 

.. 1 12 0 

. . 3 0 0 



Prices of Provisions. 

Wheaten Bread, per lb 0 0 4 

Beef 

Pork 

Mutton 

Rice 

Coffee 



=£ 


s. 


d. 


0 


0 


4 


0 


0 


10 


0 


0 


10 


0 


0 


10 


0 


0 


3 to 7d. 


0 


0 


9^ Is. 



Currency. 

Coin. — The amount cannot be ascertained. Paper. — Notes 
of Colonial Bank estimated at ^40,000 in 1840 ; ^50,000 in 
1841 ; and ^45,000 in 1842. 

Lands under Crop. 

Sugar. Coffee. Cocoa. Prov. Pasture. Cotton. Uncult. 

1840. Acres.. 2,476 20 24 1,828 3,080 0 18,539 

1841. ,, ..2,837 486 103 2,094 2,291i 0 18,297 

1842. „ ..3,240 471 114 1,814 2,630 3 9,486 



1840. 
1841. 
1842. 



Horses. 

910.. 
885.. 
744.. 



Stock. 

Horned Cattle. Sheep. Goats. 

..2,673 1,626 561 

..2,500 1,832 661 

, ..2,165 1,794.. .... 712 

M 2 



164 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Amount of collective Imports and Exports, 1840, 
Imports £66,078 Exports £84,029. 

The amount of Slave Compensation paid to the Proprietors, 

was £335,627 16s. 

Newspaper published in Castries : — 

The Independent Press, Thursday, by G. R. Plummer. Esta- 
blished 1839. 

The Palladium, Thursday, by C. H. Wells. Established 
1838. (Suspended.) 



( 165 ) 



MARTINIQUE. 

As you come up from the southward, you pass close 
to that remarkable round-pointed rock, called the 
Diamond, 580 feet high. It is in the form of a 
cupola, and like that of St. Paul's, London, but twice 
the size. On the top of this rock Captain Morris 
hoisted a 32-pounder from the top-sail yard-arm of 
his ship during the last war, and mounted it on this 
perilous fortress to the great annoyance of the French 
traders. 

Martinique was discovered by the Spaniards in 
the year 1493. It afterwards came into the posses- 
sion of France, by which power it was held till about 
the middle of the 18th century, when it fell into 
the hands of the English. It was subsequently re- 
stored to France at the peace of 1814. Martinique 
is still a colony of France; it is the largest island 
in the West Indies belonging to that country. It 
is nearly 50 miles in length by 16 in breadth, and 
comprehends an area of 3,382 square miles. The 
surface is uneven and intersected in all parts by steep 
and rugged rocks. One of the highest, called Piton 
de Corbet, is about 800 feet above the level of the 
sea. The shape of this hill resembles a cone, and 
it is on that account very difficult of access. The 
palm trees that cover it become more lofty and 
abundant near the summit, and these continually 
attract the clouds, which occasion noxious damps- 
and contribute to render it more rugged in appear, 
ance, and more dangerous to ascend. There are 
two other mountains conspicuous from their eleva- 



166 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



tion, and from these descend streams which irrigate 
the island. Martinique is better supplied with water 
and less exposed to hurricanes than Gaudaloupe, 
whilst the productions of both islands are nearly the 

same. 

The terrific hurricane of August 1831 visited Mar- 
tinique, but only injured the houses and plantations 
slightly, compared to what were its devastating effects 
on Barbadoes, St. Vincent, and St. Lucia. It is 
curious to mark the course of its fierce career. In 
the night of the 10th of August it visited Barbadoes. 
On that evening the sun set on a landscape of the 
greatest beauty and fertility, but rose on the following 
morning over a scene of utter desolation and waste. 
Every tree that was not entirely uprooted, was de- 
prived of its foliage and branches; houses were 
thrown down to the ground, or materially damaged, 
and many families buried in the ruins. The evening 
of the 10th of August was not remarkable for any 
peculiarity of appearance ; but in the night it began 
to rain, accompanied with flashes of lightning, and 
a high wind; at midnight the wind encreased, the 
rain fell in torrents, and the lightning was vivid in 
the extreme. At one o'clock the hurricane com- 
menced, and from two until day-break it is impossible 
to convey any idea of the violence of the storm. The 
noise of the wind, the peals of thunder, and the 
rapidly repeated flashes of lightning, more like sheets 
of fire, the impenetrable darkness which succeeded, 
the crash of walls, roofs, and beams, were all mixed 
in appalling confusion. The tempest did not entirely 
cease, nor the atmosphere clear up, until about nine 
o'clock of the morning of the 11th. 

On the 11th it passed over the islands of St. Vin- 



MARTINIQUE. 



167 



cent and St. Lucia, extending a portion of its influence 
to Martinique and islands to the N.W., and to 
Grenada on the South, but exhibiting its principal 
violence between 12^° and 14^° N. 3 or the parallels 
of Barbadoes and Martinique. On the 12th it arrived 
on the southern coast of Porto Rico; from the 12th 
to the 13th it swept over the south side of Hayti, 
and extended its influence as far southward as Ja- 
maica. On the 13th it raged on the eastern portion 
of Cuba, sweeping in its course over large districts. 
The town of Aux Caves, in Hayti, was almost des- 
troyed by its force, and that of St. Jago de Cuba 
was very much damaged. On the 14th it was at 
Havana, and towards the west end of Cuba. On the 
loth it proceeded north-westward, and on the 16th 
and 17th it arrived on the northern shores of the 
Mexican Sea, in about the 30th degree of latitude, 
raging simultaneously at Pensacola, Mobile, and Xew 
Orleans, where its effects were continued till the 18th. 
At Xew Orleans, on the 17th, it came on in dreadful 
gales, from N.E. to S.E., accompanied with torrents 
of rain. Almost all the shipping in the river were 
driven on shore, and very few of the smaller craft 
escaped total wreck. The back part of the city was 
completely inundated. The sugar canes, above and 
below the city, were laid flat, and the loss was enor- 
mous. The gale was felt at Natchez, 300 miles up 
the river ; and hereabout it spent itself in heavy rains, 
after having occupied a period of six days in its 
cycloidal course from Barbadoes. 

The distance passed over by this storm, in its 
passage from Barbadoes to New Orleans is equal to 
2, 100 nautical miles. The average rate, about 15 
miles an hour. 



168 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Hurricanes in the West Indies have been seldom 
known to extend to the southward of 12°N. lat. The 
season when they may be expected is from August to 
the full moon of October; and it is said that they most 
frequently happen three days before and after the full 
and change of the moon during that period. 

" And although it is true/' writes a naval officer, 
"that the prognostics of a coming storm are, in 
general, sufficiently plain to be understood by a spec- 
tator, from the angry appearance of the firmament, 
yet it is also true that there is no particular indication 
in any one quarter of the horizon sufficiently marked, 
like the space occupied by the Black squall panoply 
of the Caribbean Sea; — so that an acute seaman 
shall say — " thence will the blast come." On the 
contrary the clouds gather together in dense masses, 
of a cinereous hue, in every direction, until the whole 
canopy of heaven is overspread, and the gloom at 
last becomes so intense that, even at mid-day, to 
speak within bounds, beyond a quarter of a mile no 
object can be even indistinctly seen. There are, 
however, some degrees of variation in the intensity 
of the obscurity, but we all know that the measure 
of distance by the eye upon such an exciting occasion 
is not likely to be very exact : at one period in a 
hurricane, just as the ship was dismasted, at the 
crisis, near noon, we could not clearly distinguish 
the end of the bowsprit from the quarter-deck." 

The country round the town, St. Pierre, is beau- 
tiful, smoothly rising in a green upland of canes, 
intersected with winding roads and dotted with white 
houses, whilst a deep ravine on one side, and pre- 
cipitous mountains on the other, inclose the picture 
as in a frame. All visitors are liberal in their praise 



MARTINIQUE. 



169 



of the beauty of this town. The streets are neat, 
regular, and cleanly; the houses are high and have 
more the air of European houses than those of the 
English colonies. Some of the streets have an avenue 
of trees, which overshadow the footpath; and on 
either side are deep gutters, down which the water 
flows. There are four booksellers' houses, and the 
fashions are well displayed in other shops. The 
cause is this: the French colonists, whether Creoles 
or French, consider the West Indies as their country : 
they cast no wistful looks towards France: they 
marry, educate, and build in and for the West Indies, 
and for the West Indies alone. In our colonies it is 
different; they are considered more as temporary 
lodging-places, to be deserted so soon as they have 
made money enough by molasses and sugar to return 
home. 

But we must land, as the steamer cannot stop. 
You are landed by shore boats, if you can get them; 
if not, by the boats from the steamer. As you are a 
passenger in the steamer, the custom-house officer 
does not search your luggage, but politely asks you 
what are the contents of your trunks. Had you 
come by sailing vessel there would have been much 
pother about them. 

It is also the same as to passports. One may 
arrive and depart in the steamers without their being 
required ; it is not so when you come or go by sailing 
ships; in this case much formality is observed. The 
fee for a passport taken from here is 10 francs, and 
you must personally attend at the offices of the Com- 
missary of Police and that of the Administrator of. 
the Interior. You escape all this trouble by being a 



170 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



passenger in the Royal Mail Company's steamers. 
The French colonists have no packets of their own. 
These steamers form the only regular link with Europe 
and the French inhabitants in Martinique. 

English gold or silver does not pass current here, 
but Spanish dollars and French coins are accepted: 
there is no bank. 

There are two very good hotels close to the land- 
ing-place; one in the English style, and one in the 
French; the cost of living is from 2 dollars to 3 dol- 
lars a day. 

There is a theatre, which English travellers pro- 
nounce the best in the West Indies; and a botanic 
garden, which is in a flourishing and improving state, 
about a mile from the town. You must walk, as no 
carriages are to be hired. There is a news-room with 
billiards, but no library. There are two churches 
and two chapels, and instruction is given solely in 
French, a few inferior schools both for juveniles and 
adults; all Roman Catholic. 

This island is ruled by a Governor, assisted with 
other chiefs under his order, elected according to the 
laws of France, as stated under the head of Guada- 
loupe. 

About 400 of the military are stationed here. 

The Governor resides at Fort Royal, the seat of 
government, 21 miles from St. Pierre, the commercial 
sea-port. 

The mode of conveyance to Port Royal is in small 
covered boats rowed by four men. On return you 
sail back favoured by the wind. 

The beauty of the coloured women is much spoken 
of, and their rich and gay costumes set off their dark 
countenances. A crimson, green, or saffron shawl 



MARTINIQUE. 



171 



jauntily carried over the head, and bent back with 
sham jewels into a tiara, gives them a voluptuous 
and imperial air. 

Daniel O'Mullane, Esq., is the Agent in this island 
for the Royal Mail Company. 

The number of the Slave population, according to 
census of 1838, in Martinique was 76,517. 

M. Schcelcher estimates the number of slaves 
that had escaped from Martinique and Guadaloupe 
alone, to the English islands, up to 1842, at 5,000; 
"The troops of the line" he remarks, cc are harassed 
by the severe duty of guarding the coasts in conjunc- 
tion with the colonists.' 

Two Newspapers are published at Martinique. 

Journal Official, at Port Royal, on Wednesday and Saturday, 
by M. Thoubeau. Established 1817. 

Courtier de la Martinique, at St. Pierre, on Tuesday and 
Friday, by Bart. Thounen. Established 1832. 



( 172 ) 




A.NIMIS OPIBUSQUE FAR ATI. 



DOMINICA 

Was discovered by Columbus on his second voyage, 
on Sunday, November 3rd, 1493, and hence called 
by him St. Domingo or Dominica. It lies in 15° 
25' N. lat., and 61° 15' W. long.; is 29 miles 
in length, and about 16 in breadth; and contains 
186,436 acres of land, divided into ten parishes. 
For many years, though claimed by England, France, 
and Spain, the several claims were undecided. It 
fell by conquest, in the year 1/59, into the possession 
of the English, and it was afterwards ceded to Eng- 
land by France, by the treaty signed in Paris, 1763. 
In October of that year, commissioners were ap- 
pointed to dispose of the lands, and letters patent 
were issued placing Dominica with other islands 
under the government of Grenada, and directing the 
governors, "that so soon as the state and circum- 
stances of the said colonies should admit thereof, 



DOMINICA. 



173 



they should call general assemblies and make laws 
as near as may be agreeable to the laws of England, 

The island is extremely mountainous, and appears 
rugged and broken. Seyeral of its mountains are 
extinguished yolcanoes, which still frequently dis- 
charge burning sulphur, and from which issue hot 
springs. There are seyeral rivers and riyulets which 
abound in fish. The soil is rich in the extreme, and 
the vegetation is most luxuriant; the trees are of an 
uncommon height, and far exceed the tallest timber 
in England: the ferns, too, are of extraordinary size; 
there are whole forests of these in the dips and re- 
cesses of the hills, some of the separate ones stand 
20 to 25 feet in height. 

Roseau, where the steamer calls, is the capital; it 
is seated on a point of land which forms two bays, 
Woodbridge to the north, and Charlotteville to the 
south. In the hurricane months, the sea from the 
southward tumbles in here in a terrific manner, and 
rises at times to an alarming height. 

" The scenery behind the town is beautifully 
grand;" remarks the same lively writer we have 
before quoted, " indeed, the whole prospect from 
the edge of Morne Bruce, a lofty table rock occupied 
by the garrison, is one of the very finest in the West 
Indies. The valley runs up for many miles in a 
gently inclined plane between mountains of irregular 
heights and shapes, most of which are clothed up to 
their cloudy canopies with rich parterres of green 
coffee which perfumes the whole atmosphere even to 
some distance over the sea; the river rolls a deep 
and roaring stream down the middle of the vale, 
and is joined at the outlet of each side of a mountain 



174 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



torrent, whilst at the top, where the rocks converge 
into an acute angle, a cascade falls from the apex in 
a long sheet of silvery foam." 

The town of Roseau is well laid out ; the streets 
are long and spacious and regularly paved, inter- 
secting each other at right angles; there is also a 
large square or promenade; but the effects of the 
great fire that occurred in 1781, together with the 
tyranny and folly of the French rulers, were so 
ruinous both to the colony in general, and the town 
in particular, that neither the one nor the other 
have since that time been able to recover their former 
prosperity. You may walk along a street for half 
a mile, the houses seem to be complete, but they 
are all closed, and the grass grows lush and verdantly 
between the stones. 

The fortifications of Roseau, namely, Young's 
Fort, Melville's Battery, Bruce' s Hih\ and Fort 
Demoulin, are very strong and in commanding posi- 
tions. 

The climate may be said to resemble that of 
England very much, with, the exception of its greater 
moisture. The average temperature at Roseau is be- 
tween 73° and 85°, but in the interior and on the 
mountains the heat is much reduced, and indeed so 
cold as to render woollens indispensable for body 
clothing, and bed covering. 

The inhabitants are divided by language and re- 
ligion, and petty intestine quarrels destroy that 
unanimity which in so small a community should 
prevail. 

Coffee is the chief product of the island. There 
are about 200 coffee plantations and 50 sugar estates. 
The highest mountain in Dominica is 5,300 feet 



DOMINICA. 



175 



above the level of the sea. At about six miles from 
Roseau, near the centre of the island, and on the 
top of a very high mountain, surrounded by others 
more lofty, is a lake of fresh water, covering a space 
of several acres, and in some places unfathomable; 
it spreads itself into three distinct branches, and has 
a very extraordinary appearance. 

The laws in force in this island are its own acts of 
Assembly, and so much of the common and statute 
law of England, adapted to the circumstances of the 
colony, as existed prior to the proclamation of 7th 
October 1763, and such acts of Parliament passed 
since, as are expressly declared or manifestly in- 
tended to apply to the island or to the colonies in 
general. 



Shipping. 

Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men, 

1840.. 273 12,294 1,683 



1840.. 277 12,666 1,673 
1841 .. 316 13,030 1,860 
1842.. 344 13,431 — 



1841.. 321 12,808 1,846 
1842.. 347 13,709 



Scholars. 

1840. Daily 1,064. Sunday 

1841. „ 1,420. „ 293 

1842. ,, 1,176. 246 

Supported partly from funds at disposal of Bishop, partly 
Mico Charity, and a small part by Collections and Subscrip- 
tions, and Wesleyan Missions. 

Total Expenditure of the Mico Charity in the Island, for 
the Year ending 30th September, amounts to j£l,770 4s. ll^d. 
sterling. 



176 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Baptisms. Marriages. Burials. 

1840 717 .... 351 .... 157* 

1841 52 .... 12 .... 83 

1842 118 .... 27 .... 76 

Wages for Labour. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

Domestic, per month 18s. to 25s. ., 18s. to 25s. .. 20s. 

Predial on Estates, with 

House and Ground, > 9d. to Is. .. 7-Jd. to 9d. .. 9d. 
per day 3 

Trades on Estates, with "J 

House and Ground, ' lOd. to ls.6d. . 9d. to Is. . . ~1 
rent free, per day . . j ^3s 

Ditto, without ditto .. 2s. to 3s.6d. . 2s.6d.to 3s.6d. . > 



Prices of Provisions. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Wheaten Bread, per lb. ..0 0 3J..0 0 4..0 0 4 

Beef „ ... 0 0 7|J 0 7i,0 0 7| 

Mutton „ ...0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 

Pork „ ... 0 0 5£..0 0 5|. . 0 0 5£ 

Rice per quart. 0 1 0..0 1 0..0 1 0 

Coffee per lb. .. 0 1 0 . . 0 1 0 . . 0 1 0 

Tea „ . . 0 6 0 . . 0 7 0 . . 0 7 0 

Sugar ,, ..0 0 7 ..0 0 7\. . 0 0 4 



Course of Exchange. 

Average rate on London, 1840, £247 10 0 per £100 sterl. 
1841, £247 7 11 

1842. — By an Act of the Legislature of this Colony the Cur- 
rency has been assimilated to that of Great Britain. 

A Sulphur Mine, on the Souffriere Estate, in the parish of 
St. Mark, shipped in 1840 to Great Britain, upwards of 450 
tons of ore. 



* The number of deaths cannot be accurately ascertained. Those only who have 
been buried in the town of Rosean are entered in the register. 



DOMINICA. 



177 



The amount of Slave Compensation to Dominica was 
£275,923 12s. 8d. 

Collective amount of Imports and Exports, 1840. 
Imports £61,004 Exports £76,681 

Two Xevvspapers are published at Roseau. 

The Dominican, on Wednesday, by G. C. Falconer. Esta- 
blished 1832. 

The Dominica Colonist, Saturday, bv W. F. Stewart. Esta- 
blished 1825. 



N 



( 178 ) 



GUADALOUPE 

Is situated in long. 62° W. and lat. 16° 20' N. It 
consists properly of two islands, separated from each 
other by a narrow channel called La Riviere Salee, 
which is navigable by vessels of 50 tons burthen. 
This strait is an arm of the sea, about two leagues 
in length, and no scene can be more pleasant than 
the passage; the water being clear and still, and the 
banks on each side lined with mangroves and palmet- 
toes, which afford excellent refreshment and shelter 
from the heat. 

Guadaloupe was discovered by Columbus, who found 
it inhabited by a warlike people; but they were soon 
subdued by the Spaniards. In 1635 it was taken by 
the French. In 1759 it was conquered by Britain, 
but restored to France in 1/63. After this period it 
was twice taken by Britain, but by the political ad- 
justment of affairs which took place in 1814, it re- 
verted to France. 

The western division of the island, called Basse 
Terre, is the most important; it is 15 leagues in 
length and 14 in breadth, and divided into two parts 
by a ridge of very high rugged mountains, extending 
north and south; so high, indeed, that the continual 
cold suffers nothing to grow but fern, and sometimes 
useless trees covered with moss. Toward the south 
point there appears a mountain, called La SouJFriere, 
or the Sulphur Hill, which is about 5,500 feet above 
the level of the sea. This mountain exhales a thick 
black smoke, mixed with sparks, visible from the 
sea. From the mountains flow many streams, that 



GUADALOUPE. 



179 



carry fruitfulness into the plains, and attemper the 
burning air of the climate. 

The eastern division of the island, distinguished 
by the name of Grand Terre, about 14 leagues in 
length and 6 in breadth, has not been so much 
favoured by nature as the western part; it is less 
rough, and more level, but it wants springs and 
rivers; the soil, more sandy, is not so fertile, nor is 
its climate so healthy. The eastern part is very low. 
The principal town, Port-a-Pitre, or St. Louis, con- 
tains about 15,000 inhabitants, and is a place of 
considerable trade. 

The chief town of Guadaloupe is that named Basse 
Terre, to which the steamers convey the mails and 
passengers; it is situated near the south end of the 
island. It is a very pretty and convenient town; it 
is clean, well built, the seat of Government, and 
contains 5,500 inhabitants. It has also two parish 
churches, a government house, hall of justice, a 
large hospital, an arsenal, some good public fountains 
and promenades, and a fine colonial garden. It is 
defended by several batteries on the sea side. 

Guadaloupe is celebrated for the beauty of its 
women. It was first peopled by the French, and it 
belongs to them now: the dress and manners of the 
mother country are prevalent. 

The legislature consists of a governor and a colonial 
council of 30 members, elected for five years by 
natives of France, resident in the island, above 25 
years of age, and paying taxes of 300 francs a year, 
or having a capital of the value of 30,000 francs. In 
1836, the number of electors was 1092. To be 
eligible for a member of council, the individual must 
be 30 years of age, and pay taxes to the amount of 

n 2 



180 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



600 francs, or possess property to the value of 60,000 
francs. In 1836, 619 persons were eligible for coun- 
sellors. The colony had in 1836 a military com- 
mandant, and an armed force of 2,138 men, including 
100 officers. 

The Governor of Guadaloupe is independent of the 
Governor of Martinique. 

The number of slaves in 1838, was 93,349. 



Two Newspapers are published at Guadaloupe. 

Journal Commercial, Point a Pitre, Wednesday and Satur- 
day, by Vve Minee. Established 1811. 

Courrier de la Guadaloupe, Point a Pitre, Tuesday, Thurs- 
day, and Saturday, by A. Haget. Established 1834. 



( 181 ) 




ANTIGUA 

Is the largest and most important English island in 
the Northern Windward group. It was discovered 
by Columbus on his second voyage in 1493, and 
named by him from a church in Seville called Santa 
Maria de la Antigua. It is situate in lat. 17° 3' N. 
and long. 62° 7' W. ; it is of an oblong shape, being 
about 20 miles long, about 50 miles in circumference, 
and contains 59,838 acres of land. It is divided 
into six parishes and eleven districts. 

As early as 1632, a few English families took up 
lands there and began the cultivation of tobacco. 
This island had been granted by Charles I. to the 
Earl of Carlisle, but Charles II. purchased the EaiTs 
rights, and conferred them on Lord Willoughby, 
then governor of Barbadoes, who settled a colony 
there in a few years. 

Antigua enjoyed a legislative assembly at least as 
early as 10th of April, 1668, this being the date of 



182 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



the first Antigua Act mentioned in the printed col- 
lections. This island being afterwards subdued by 
a French force, but subsequently retaken by the 
British, all the former titles of British subjects to 
land therein had become forfeited to the Crown, and 
Charles II. granted confirmations of former titles of 
these lands, in consideration whereof the Assembly 
by Act of 19th of May, ] 668, consented to the im- 
position of the 4^ per cent, duty on exported produce, 
which was only repealed in 1838, as previously shewn 
in the article on Barbadoes. 

In 1672, Antigua with St. Kitt's, Nevis, Mont- 
serrat, and the Virgin islands, were consolidated 
under one general government, called " The Leeward 
Caribbee Island Government." This Leeward Island 
Government no longer exists, the islands of which it 
was composed being differently combined. On the 
19th December, 1832, the islands of Antigua, Mont- 
serrat, Barbuda, St. Kitt's, Nevis, Dominica, and 
the Virgin islands, were comprised under one govern- 
ment; each island, however, enjoying a legislative 
council and assembly of its own. 

The council of Antigua consists of 12 members, 
and the assembly of 25. 

Antigua has a rocky shore, and is surrounded by 
many dangerous reefs. There being no rivers, and 
but few springs, and those mostly brackish, the in- 
habitants are obliged to preserve the rain water in 
tanks and cisterns. Excessive droughts sometimes 
impede and destroy vegetation. 

But, dry as Antigua is generally represented to be, 
the interior is not without gentle wooded hills and 
green meadowy vales. The island has no central 
eminences; the highest elevation being about 1200 
feet; but is, for the most part, ramparted round by 



ANTIGUA. 



183 



very magnificent cliffs, which slope inward in gradual 
declivities. The heart of the island is verdant with 
an abundant pasturage or grassy down, and the nu- 
merous houses of the planters, embosomed in trees, 
have more the appearance of country mansions in 
England than almost any others in the West Indies. 
The shores are indented in every direction with creeks, 
and bays, and coves, some of them running into 
the centre of the plantations like canals, some swell- 
ing into estuaries, and others forming spacious har- 
bours. Beyond these, an infinite variety of islands 
and islets stud the bosom of the blue sea, and stand 
out like so many advanced posts of defence against 
the invading waves. They are of all sizes and shapes, 
and are given up to the rearing of provisions and the 
maintenance of a great number of cattle. 

The steamer goes to English Harbour, which is on 
the south side of the island, and has a compact dock- 
yard, with stores and materials for repairing and 
heaving down and careening ships. 

The mouth of English Harbour, which is 113 
fathoms across, was formerly defended in times of 
warfare by an immense iron chain. This, however, 
is now no more; but it is said the staples by which 
it was secured still remain in the massive rocks. The 
harbour is now protected by two forts, placed on 
each side of the opening; Fort Charlotte mounted 
with four guns, 18 and 24 pounders; Fort Berkley, 
mounting 24 guns. At the latter fort is a magazine. 

This harbour is a remarkably snug and pretty 
place, but reputed to be unhealthy. The extreme 
neatness of the docks, the busy village in their 
vicinity, the range of hills of various shapes and 
colours which encircles the inland sides, and the 



184 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



rocky ridge which frowns over the mouth, with its 
union-flag, and cannons, and ramparts, present such 
a combination of tropical beauty, and English style 
and spirit, as is scarcely to be seen in the West 
Indies. 

At English Harbour, where passengers land, ac- 
commodation is to be found at Richardson's Hotel, 
which is as neat and comfortable as such places 
generally are. Horses and carriages may also be 
procured at Brooke's and Gordon's, which is a great 
convenience to those whom business directs to pro- 
ceed to the capital. Nor are the roads in general to 
be complained of, considering the annual injury they 
sustain in the rainy season. English Harbour is a 
naval dock-yard, where the largest ships on the 
station may be hauled up alongside the wharf to be 
repaired. The water is deep enough to float vessels 
of any burden, and the wharf is very commodious to 
land passengers and baggage from the steamer. In 
order to facilitate the approach of the steamers during 
the night or in hazy weather, the Legislature are 
about erecting lights to guide them. Passengers 
may avail themselves of the boat kept by the Queen's 
pilot. 

St. John's, the capital of Antigua, lies 12 miles 
distant and on the opposite side of the island; it is 
prettily situated on the top and acclivities of a mo- 
derate eminence. The streets are wide, and laid out 
at right angles, and are generally clean, and some 
of the houses are good notwithstanding the severe 
shock they sustained in the late earthquake. The 
population of the city by the census just taken is 
nearly 9000. In more than one instance the police 
force has not been found sufficient to check the law- 



ANTIGUA. 



185 



lessness of the lower orders, and to correct which it 
has been recommended that power should be given 
to the local government by an act of corporation to 
this and other cities for their own guidance and 
protection. Jamaica and Trinidad are, we believe, 
the only islands where the capitals possess civic self- 
rule. We are not prepared to enter into the legal 
points, but we agree with our correspondent that 
charters of corporation emanating from the Crown 
would be of much service, and perhaps if memorials 
were forwarded to the proper quarter, many salutary 
changes in this way might be effected. What the 
colonists require is more independence of action and 
power to act in local matters. 

The traveller may calculate on meeting in St. 
John's every comfort beyond what an itinerary or 
hebdomadal visitor would wish for. There are some 
very good hotels after their sort, the fare being about 
Ss. sterling per diem, and in proportion to the habits 
of the guests. There is an excellent library, which 
perhaps ranks the highest in the West Indies, and 
indeed is equal to many of the first libraries of the 
county towns in the united kingdom. Any stranger, 
recommended by a member, has free access to it for 
the first month of his sojourn. This library is in- 
corporated and is governed by a committee of 14, 
who are elected annually. 

The windward northern islands have been created 
by Queen's patent into a separate diocese, styled the 
Bishopric of Antigua, and St. John's has in conse- 
quence been raised to the dignity of a city. There 
are 14 churches and chapels attached to the esta- 
blished religion, two of which escaped injury from 
the late earthquake, viz., St. George's and St. Mary's. 



186 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The cathedral was a perfect wreck on the day of 
visitation, but from the energies of the local authori- 
ties it has been patched up for the weekly services. 
It is however in such a ruinous state that it must be 
built de novo. There are several charitable institu- 
tion s, such as the " Daily Meal Society," where 
provision is afforded to a large body of paupers. 
Many of them are perpetual inmates, and many sick 
are admitted into its inlirmary and lazaretto; there 
has also been recently erected a ward for sailors. 
It is supported by voluntary contributions, and occa- 
sionally the Legislature make it a grant of money. 
There is a similar institution at English Harbour. 
Every parish in the island has a friendly society, and 
some number as many as 1400 members. Their 
object is to afford relief in sickness and a decent 
interment at death. These charitable institutions 
are not confined to the church, but are to be found 
among the Moravian and Wesleyan missionaries. 
There are some very fine public edifices in St. John's, 
but they are all more or less injured from the violence 
of the earthquake. The court house was so much 
shaken that it was necessary to hold the session 
elsewhere. 

Antigua took the lead in the great question of 
emancipation, and alone passed from a state of 
slavery to one of complete freedom; the inter- 
mediate state of apprenticeship not having been 
adopted. 

Of nearly 60,000 acres, which the island contains, 
34,000 are appropriated to sugar, a small part is 
unimprovable, and the rest is devoted to cotton, 
tobacco and pasture. The island is bountifully sup- 
plied with edible vegetables and fruit. The coasts 



ANTIGUA. 



187 



and bays have abundance of excellent fish, in great 
variety. One of its own writers says, c< Salt ponds 
might be worked with good effect. Tobacco grows 
spontaneously; coffee has been naturalized and grows 
wild. Cotton, ginger, palma Christi — all are dis- 
regarded, even the pimento is left to decay in its 
loveliness, and its* fragrant fruit serves but to feed 
the birds — all give place to sugar, which is the only 
product cultivated with any care, and if this suc- 
ceeds, the Antiguans are perfectly satisfied." 

The planters' houses are perhaps the best ap- 
pointed of any in the \Yest Indies. Many of them 
are very old mansions, and constructed upon a more 
spacious and substantial plan than is generally 
deemed expedient in these clays. A small park, or 
lawn, is commonly enclosed round the house, and 
the sugar-works, (which, however picturesque at a 
distance, are a very disagreeable appendage at hand,) 
are so well concealed by trees and bushes, that in 
many cases their existence would not be suspected 
by a person within the principal building. There are 
also some pretty flower-gardens to be seen. 

The fossils and petrified woods of this island are 
pre-eminently beautiful; they are found on various 
parts of the coast. x\mong the most prized are the 
red cedar, with agate intermixed ; roots and branches 
of cocoa-nut trees ; plantain stalks with beautiful 
lines of agate running through them, the palm, 
aloe, &c. Brooches and other trinkets are made of 
these stones; they are very beautiful and very high 
priced. 

Sir James Clarke says, — " The climate of Antigua, 
according to the iVrmy Reports, may be considered 
as more favourable both to white and black troops 



188 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



than most of the others in command." The hottest 
months are June, July, and August. The meridian 
height of the thermometer, during this season in 
the shade is about 80° and during the other parts of 
the year 70°. September, October, and November 
are generally reckoned the unhealthy periods of the 
year. The sea-breezes are not then so steady, and a 
heavy sultry calm impends. 



Baptisms. Marriages. Deaths. 

1840 981 554 931 

1841 655 523 574 

1842 795 458 623 

Schools and Scholars. 

5 parishes. 1840 2092 Scholars. 

1841 2267 

1842 .. 2370 

Cost : ,£250 from Colonial Legislature and voluntary con- 
tributions. 

Wesleyan Connexion. 

1842. Scholars. Males. . 814 Females. . 1142 Total. . 1956 
Teachers. ..56 ..104 160 

Shipping. 



Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840 542 37,609 2,925 

1841 .. 347 22,015 2,306 

1842 .. 431 22,710 2,722 



Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840 475 37,375 3,133 

1841 .. 45 10,245 608 

1842 .. 474 33,389 — 



Paper Circulation. 

1840. Colonial Bank average amount of notes in 

circulation ^60,000 

1841. Ditto ditto 70,000 

West India, from 2nd Aug. to 30th Sept. . 35,000 

1842. Ditto during the year 50,936 



ANTIGUA. 



189 



Course of Exchange per £100 sterling. 

1840— £220 to £222 10 

1841— £220 to £225 

1842— £222 10 

Rates of Wages. 



1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Domestic, per day 0 1 1%. . 0 1 H. . 0 1 1| 

Predial.. „ 0 1 6..0 1 6..0 1 6 

Trades.. „ 0 4 6..0 3 0..0 3 0 



Prices of Provisions. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Wheaten Bread. . per lb. .. 0 0 9....0 0 4£. . . . 0 0 4£ 



Beef ,, ..0 1 0....0 0 9....0 0 9 

Mutton ,, ..0 1 6....0 0 10....0 0 10 

Pork „ ..0 0 9....0 0 9....0 0 9 

Rice „ ..0 0 3 0 0 3 0 0 3 

Coffee „ ..0 1 1£ ..0 1 3.. ..0 1 3 

Tea ,, ..0 6 0.. ..0 6 0.. ..0 6 0 

Sugar ,, ..0 0 9.. ..0 0 7* . . 0 0 7-J 

Collective amount of Imports and Exports for 1840. 
Imports. £191,185 Exports £443,080 



Amount of Slave Compensation to Antigua was £425,866 7s. 

There are three Newspapers published at St. John's. 

The Weekly Register, on Tuesday, by W. Mercer. Es- 
tablished 1803. 

Herald and Gazette, on Friday, by T. W. Martin. Esta- 
blished 1839. 

Antigua Observer, on Thursday, by A. B. Hill. Esta- 
blished 1843. 



190 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 




IV.ONTSERRAT 

Was discovered by Columbus on bis second voyage. 
It lies in 16° 47' N. lat., and 62° 13' W. long: is 
about three leagues in length, and as many in 
breadth; and contains about 30,000 acres of land, 
two -thirds of which are very mountainous or very 
barren. It bears the cypress, cedar, iron tree, and 
other woods, and has the same general character 
of soil that is observable in the other Caribbee 
islands. Its mountainous character, and probably 
some resemblance, induced Columbus to give it the 
name of a mountain near Barcelona, in Spain. The 
word is also expressive of its broken and hilly ap- 
pearance. The Spaniards made no settlement in the 
island. Like Nevis, it was first planted by a small 
colony from St. Christopher's. This was detached, 
in 1632, from the adventurers under Warner. 

Montserrat possessed a legislative council and as- 
sembly as early as 1668. An Act in that year re- 



MONTSERRAT. 



191 



cites that, during the late war between Charles II., 
the French king, and the Netherlands, his Britannic 
majesty lost several of his islands in the West Indies; 
but that this same island, having been afterwards 
resettled and restored by several ships and forces 
belonging to his said majesty, King Charles II., his 
majesty, in consideration of the payment of A\ per 
cent, export duty, reinvested the late proprietors in 
all their lands, &c. 

This island, with Barbadoes, Antigua, Nevis, St. 
Kitt's, and Tortola, were assessed with these oner- 
ous duties until 1838, when they were repealed. 
They amounted, from their first establishment till re- 
pealed, to between seven and eight millions sterling. 

Montserrat was finally ceded to Great Britain 
under the general pacification which took place in 
1783. One of the Acts of Assembly passed about 
this time is very curious. It recites, in an Eastern 
style of metaphor, that approbrious language, ' 'if 
not prevented, may overshadow the good government 
and administration of justice in this island with the 
staple clouds of reproach and infamy;" and it then 
proceeds to prohibit such language generally, and 
the following in particular, " Tory, English, Irish, 
Scotch Dog." 

The original settlers were Irish, and the present 
inhabitants are composed chiefly of their descend- 
ants, or natives of Ireland, and the jargon of the 
negroes has an Irish brogue.* 

* It is said that a Connaught man on arrival at Montserrat was, 
to his astonishment, hailed in vernacular Irish by a negro from one of 
the boats that came alongside. " Thunder and turf/' cries Paddy, 
" how long have you been here?" " Three months," answered Qnashy. 
"Three months! and so black already!" " Thaunamun dowl," says 
Pat, thinking Quashy a countryman, " I'll not stay among ye." And 
tiie Connaught man was soon on his return home with a white skin. 



192 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Montserrat has an inferior soil; but the varied 
succession of hill and valley and precipitous moun- 
tains, densely clothed with wild fertility, afford 
some of the most enchanting scenes that are to be 
found within the tropics. 

The town, called Plymouth, is small, but many 
of the houses are singularly well-built of a fine grey 
stone, and have a substantial and comfortable ap- 
pearance. It stands on the S.W. side of the island. 

The principal roadstead is off the town, but a surf 
beats continually on shore : passengers are landed by 
canoes, which do not preserve them from a good 
wetting in the surf. 

Mr. Coleridge says, "The people of Montserrat 
call their island the Montpellier of the West Indies; 
and when invalids, rheumatics and others, lured by 
the name, come for relief to breathe its air, the first 
thing they have to undergo is a forcible baptism in 
salt water, and then to be converted into drying- 
horses under a tropical sun: 55 and all this from the 
want of a jetty or pier, which might easily be con- 
structed with the stone of the immediate neighbour- 
hood. This remark was written in 1825. 

Heavy goods are landed and shipped by means of 
a boat called a Moses, manned by expert rowers, 
who, when they see what is termed a lull, or abate- 
ment of the surge, push ashore, and lay the broad- 
side of the Moses on the beach, so as to roll out or 
admit hogsheads, &c. 

Montserrat is deservedly celebrated for its beauty 
and salubrity. There are about 6,000 acres appro- 
priated to sugar, 2,000 to cotton, 2,000 to provi- 
sions, and 2,000 to pasturage. 

"But if you ever visit Montserrat, good reader/ 5 



MONTSERRAT. 



193 



writes the enthusiastic Mr. Coleridge, ff go, even if 
you have only one day, to the Soufriere. I have 
seen a thousand beautiful things in the West Indies, 
but I cannot even now think over my morning ramble 
to this Soufriere without feeling my heart swell with 
love and sorrow that I shall never see it again." 

"The path was like one of my Devonshire lakes: 
no primroses or violets were there, indeed, but the 
snowy amaryllis drooped her long and delicate petals 
like a love-sick girl; the thrice gorgeous hibiscus 
was unveiling his crown and feathers of scarlet, and 
the light limes and darker orange-trees, which formed 
a verdant hedge on either side, were exhaling their 
perfumed incense to Him who made them so beauti- 
ful and so good. A thin grey cloud obscured the 
sun, whilst an Atlantic breeze blew gently and freshly 
upon my face and open neck. The air was as cool 
as on a May morning in England, but so inexpressi- 
bly soft, so rare and subtle to the senses, that I may 
think the ether which angels breathe cannot be purer 
stuff than this. 

"After this I nearly broke my neck in a dry 
gulley, which was about as good a bridle-path as the 
steps to the top of St. Paul's. The gulley ended 
in one of those green Savanas which nature has 
ofttimes so mysteriously cleared in the midst of 
the impenetrable virgin woods of tropical regions. 
No difference of soil or situation can be the cause; 
you may lean your back against the frontier tree 
of a forest which no axe or torch hath ever in- 
vaded, and stretch your body on the meadow turf 
where scarcely a weed can be seen. There is no man 
to fell these trees or divert their growth; there is no 
hedge or wall or trench to impede their march; but 

o 



194 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



God said to the Forest as he said to the Sea, " Thus 
far shalt thou go, aud no farther." The view was 
beautiful; behind me the woody mountain rose into 
the clouds, before me it descended in a long grassy 
slope to the edge of the sea; on my left hand to the 
south, the broad and irregular eminences of Guada- 
loupe presented the appearance of a continent; to 
the north Redonda shone like an emerald in the midst 
of the blue waves, and beyond it stood the great 
pyramid of Nevis cut off from sight at one third from 
its summit by an ever-resting canopy of clouds. The 
wind was so fresh, the air so cool, the morning dew 
so healthy and spangling that I might have forgotten, 
but for the deep beauty that was around me, that I 
was still within the tropics. I seemed to have left 
all languor and listlessness below, and really felt for 
a season the strength, the spirits and the elasticity 
of youthful life in England." 



Shipping. 

Inwards. Ship?. Tons. Men. Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 



1840 .... 163 6,752 854 

1841 .... 85 3,541 467 

1842 .... 141 5,326 752 



1840 .... 137 4,997 662 

1841 .... 85 3,541 467 

1842 .... 146 5,458 782 



Note. — The return for 1841 is for a period of only nine 
months, on account of the alteration in making up the Blue 
Book. 

Scholars. 

Males. Females. Total. 

1840. Church of England 302 340 642 

1841. Expense, £\±2 14s 290 .... 343 .... 633 

1842. .. ..267 .... 300 .... 567 
Sunday Scholars 459 



MOXTSERRAT. 



195 



18-40. Wesleyan Methodists .. . 

1841. Expense, £128 

1842 



Males. 


Females. 


Total. 


222 .. 


.. 268 .. 


.. 490 


153 .. 


.. 142 .. 


.. 295 


98 


.. 105 .. 


.. 203 






. . 454 



Wages for Labour. 

1840. 1S41. 1842. 

D Tonth'. P . er j 13s. 6d. to 27s. 13s. 6d. to 18s. 13s.6d. to 18s. 

6d. 9d. 6d.to6|d. 

Trades, per month, 45s. to 54s. same. same. 
Prices of Provisions. 

1840, 1S41. 1S42. 

£ s. <L £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Wheaten Bread, per lb. ..0 0 9 ..0 0 44. . 0 [ 

Beef ...0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 

Mutton ,, ...0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 

Pork „ • ... 0 0 6 . . 0 0 6 . . 0 0 6 

Rice perlOOlbs. 1 2 0..1 7 0..1 2 0 

Coffee ,, ... 5 12 6 . . 5 12 6 . . 5 12 C 

Tea per lb. . . 0 9 0 . . 0 9 0 . . 0 9 0 

Sugar per cwt. 1 16 0 ..2 0 6 . . 1 16 0 

Course of Exchange. 

1840 .... £212 10 0 per £100 sterling. 

1841 .... 210 0 0 

1842 .... 220 5 0 

Circulation. — Coin, about £b, 000. No local paper. Note* 
of Colonial and West India Bank circulate. 

Amount of collective Imports and Exports, 1840, 
Imports £9,994 Exports £24,227. 

The amount of Slave Compensation paid to Montserrat, was 
£103.558 18s. 5d. 



( 196 ) 




NEVIS. 

This beautiful little island lies in lat. 17° 14' N., 
and long. 63° 3' W. It is separated from St. Kitt's 
by a strait only two miles broad. It was discovered 
by Columbus on his second voyage. The English 
first established themselves in this island in 1628, 
under the protection and encouragement of Sir Thos. 
Warner. 

Nevis possessed a legislative council and assembly 
at least as early as 1664, which is the date of the 
first act in its printed collection of laws. It was one 
of those islands granted to James, Earl of Carlisle, 
by Charles I.; but afterwards Charles II., by pur- 
chase, invested himself in all the rights of the said 
Earl, and appointed Francis, Lord Willoughby of 
Parham, his Captain-General of this and the other 
Caribbee islands, and imposed the A\ per cent, duties 
on all exported articles. By the commission of 



NEVIS. 



197 



1832, Nevis, together with St. Kitt's, Dominica, 
and the Virgin Islands, were added to the govern- 
ment that had previously extended over Antigua, 
Montserrat, and Barbuda. This general government 
has not a general council or assembly ; but each 
island enjoys a council and assembly of its own. 

Xevis is one of the most beautiful of this group of 
islands. From a distance it has the appearance of a 
perfect cone rising gracefully out of the sea, and 
piercing a fleecy mass of white clouds, which sleeps 
for ever around its summit. This white crown no 
doubt suggested to Columbus the name he gave it, 
" Neives," after the snow-capped mountain of that 
name near Barcelona. The island is completely 
green, perfectly cultivated and enlivened with many 
old planters' houses of a superior style, and churches 
peeping out in the most picturesque situations ima- 
ginable. A complete forest of evergreens grows like 
a ruff, or collar, round the neck of the high land 
where cultivation ceases. It is, however, sufficiently 
level at its base to allow the use of wheeled vehicles. 

Charlestown, the capital, lies along the shores of a 
curved bay, and the mountain begins to rise immedi- 
ately behind in a long and verdant acclivity. This 
town is larger, smarter, and more populous than the 
capital of Montserrat. The island is nearly of a 
circular form, containing about 24,640 acres, of 
which only 6,000 are capable of culture. It is di- 
vided into five parishes, and there are two other 
shipping places besides Charlestown, called Indian 
Castle and Xew Castle. 

Passengers are landed sometimes by the steamers' 
boats; but if by a shore-boat, the charge for one 
person and luggage is half a dollar, or 2s. Id. ster= 



198 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



ling. Luggage is searched on the wharf, but no 
duties are charged on such articles as are personal 
luggage. There is a branch of the West India Bank 
in this island; and both dollars and British money 
pass current. 

Nevis is celebrated for its mineral springs. The 
principal hotel is the Bath-House. It is situated on 
a rising ground, and commands a view of the town, 
adjacent country, and the sea. It may be considered 
one of the most salubrious localities in the island. 
Appertaining to this establishment are hot and tepid 
baths possessing most valuable medicinal properties. 
At one part of the stream which supplies th baths, 
there are two springs; one so intensely cold as to 
produce a chill through the whole frame, and the 
other too hot to be borne by the naked foot. 

Gigs and saddle-horses may be had on hire at 
moderate charges. 

There is an Episcopal Church and Methodist 
Chapel, to each of which schools are attached. 
There is also a news-room and billiard-room. The 
seasons may be divided into the dry and rainy. The 
rainy season begins in August and continues to Janu- 
ary — the other months may be called the dry season. 
The dews are copious and should be avoided. 

The average height of the thermometer is about 
82°; but any degree of temperature may be chosen 
according to the elevation. On some of the hill 
estates several of the European culinary plants are 
cultivated, such as sea-kale, turnips, carrots. There 
are also strawberries, peaches, &c. The pines and 
oranges of Nevis are celebrated. 

James Colquhoun, Esq., St. James's Place, is the 
Agent for the island in London. Jas. Davoren, Esq. 



NEVIS. 



199 



is the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company's Agent 
in Nevis. 



Population. 
1840 7,330 1841 7,470 



1842. 



. 7,470 



1840 
1841 
1842 



Baptisms. 

368 
375 
239 



Marriages. 

148 . 
70 . 

53 . 



Burials. 

221 
243 
137 



Shipping. 



Inwards. Ships. 


Tons. 


Men. 


Outwards. 


Ships. 


Tons. 


1840 ....173 


6,716 


893 


1840 . 


. . . 203 


8,089 


1841 ....147 


5,911 


745 


1841 . 


. .. 181 


6,883 


1842 ....177 


6,401 


855 


1842 . 


. ..207 


6,697 






Scholars. 






1840. Males .. 


..276 




. 199 Total. . . 


1841. ,, .. 


..245 


,» 




. 161 


n 


1842.* „ .. 


..227 






172 


ii 



Men. 

1,079 
928 
1,011 



. ..475 
. . . 406 
. . . 399 



Wages for Labour. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

Domestic, per month, 22s. 6d 22s. 6d 22s. 6d. 

Predial, per day 9d. to Is 9d. to Is 9d. to Is. 

Trades, ,, . . . . 6d.to ls.6d.. . 6d. to ls.6d. . 6d. to ls.6d. 



* One return deficient. 



200 THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 

Prices of Provisions. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. «£ s. d. £ s. d. 

Wheaten Bread, per lb 0 0 4|..0 0 4£. . 0 0 4-| 

Beef ,, ....0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 

Mutton „ 0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 

Pork „ .. ..0 0 7i..O 0 H..0 0 7i 

Rice ,, ....0 0 4£..0 0 4£. . 0 0 4£ 

Coffee „ 0 1 6..0 1 6..0 1 6 

Tea „ .. ..0 10 0 . . 0 10 0 . . 0 10 0 

Sugar ,, ....0 1 0..0 1 0..0 1 0 

Collective amount of Imports and Exports in 1840, 
Imports ,£27,005. Exports £41,776. 



Amount of Slave Compensation for Nevis, £151,007 2s. lid. 



( 201 ) 




ST. CHRISTOPHER, 

Generally called St Kitt's, lies in 17° 15' N. lat. 
and 63° 17' W. long. This island is in shape like a 
lute; its extreme length is about 21 miles; its 
breadth at the broadest part about 7 miles. It con- 
tains about 68 square miles, or 44,000 acres, of 
which about 30,000 are cultivable. 

It is divided into nine parishes, and contains four 
towns and hamlets, viz., Basseterre, the capital, 
Sandy Point, Old Road, and Deep Bay. This sin- 
gular-looking but beautiful spot was discovered by 
Columbus himself, who gave it his own name, but 
it was neither planted nor possessed by the Spaniards. 
It is the oldest of all the British Colonies in the 
West Indies; indeed it may be called the common 
mother of all the English and French settlements in 
the Caribbee Islands. Mr. Thomas Warner with 



202 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



fourteen other persons, arrived from England at St. 
Kitt's in January, 1623. 

The English found the Caribbees in possession, 
and with them continued to live for some time on 
amicable terms. In 1624, a ship arrived with James 
Hay, Earl of Carlisle, having been sent out on the 
solicitation of Warner with necessaries for the new 
settlers. In 1625, some French adventurers landed 
and were well received by the English, and shortly 
afterwards both uniting fell upon the natives, des- 
troyed many, and drove the rest from the island. 
The island was afterwards equally divided between 
the English and French. After this the new settlers 
quarrelled among themselves, and the island twice 
changed hands, but ultimately the French were driven 
out, and by the peace of Utretcht, concluded on 31st 
of March, 1713, the island was ceded wholly to the 
English. Some of the French planters were suffered 
to remain, having taken the oaths of allegiance. 

St. Kitt's had a legislative assembly at least as 
early as August, 1694, as there is evidence from an 
act of that date that it possessed a council and as- 
sembly: the A\ per cent duties were imposed by 
Charles II. 

Mr Edwards states that "in St. Kitt's the council 
should consist of ten members; but it is seldom that 
more than seven are present. The House of Assem- 
bly is composed of twenty-four representatives, of 
whom fifteen form a quorum. The requisite quali- 
fication is a freehold of 40 acres of land, or a house 
worth £40 a year. Of the electors the qualification 
is a freehold of £10 a year 

This island presents to the eye an irregular oblong 
figure, through the centre of which runs a regular 



ST. CHRISTOPHER. 



203 



series of mountains from N. to S., in the midst 
of which stands Mount Misery, 3,700 feet in per- 
pendicular height, and clothed with the finest wood 
and pasture almost to the summit, at the other side 
the mountain slopes uniformly to the coast, richly 
cultivated in every part. 

"The vale of Basseterre, looking from the sea, 5 ' 
remarks Mr. Coleridge, "in softness, richness, and 
perfection of cultivation, surpasses anything I have 
ever seen in my life. Green velvet is an inadequate 
image of the exquisite verdancy of the cane fields 
which lie along this lovely valley and cover the smooth 
acclivities of Monkey Hill. This hill is the southern 
termination of a range of great mountains which in- 
crease in height towards the north, and thicken to- 
gether in enormous masses in the centre of the island. 
The apex of this rude pyramid is the awful crag of 
Mount Misery, which shoots slantingly forward over 
the mouth of a volcanic chasm like a huge peninsula 
in the air. It is bare and black, and generally visible 
whilst the under parts of the mountain are enveloped 
in the clouds. The height is more than 3,700 feet, 
and is the most tremendous precipice I ever beheld. 
But the ruggedness of this central cluster only ren- 
ders the contrast of the cultivated lands below more 
striking." 

The fort on Brimstone Hill is a very imposing 
object; it is situated on a huge rock, precipitous on 
all sides but one, backed by the mountains and fronted 
by the level coast and the western sea. 

If there is time, you generally are landed in the 
steamer's boat. If by shore boat, the usual charge 
is a quarter dollar. There is no very particular ex- 
amination of your luggage. As in the other islands, 



204 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



dollars and British money are current : there are 
branches of the Colonial and West India banks. 

The two principal hotels are better houses than 
are generally met with of that class in the West 
Indies. The cuisine is very good, and the bed- 
rooms airy and clean. There are some delightful 
rides, and good saddle-horses and gigs are to be 
engaged at fair charges. The roads are remarkably 
good, and the Level and salt lakes are objects worthy 
of being visited. The Level is a very remarkable 
spot in the midst of the mountains, somewhat more 
than half the distance in the ascent to the tops of the 
principal range; presenting an extensive and beauti- 
ful plain of verdant grass, shut out from everything 
that reminds you of the tropics; and the chilliness 
of the atmosphere carries off one's imagination to the 
frigid zone before you have been five minutes on the 
spot. The monkeys have selected it as a general 
rendezvous. Most of the common vegetables of Eu- 
rope will grow there, and the face of the country is 
quite different from the lowlands. 

There are nine parish churches in the island, also 
several Moravian and Wesleyan chapels. Schools 
are in connexion with these bodies: aud there is a 
classical seminary also, under the care of a graduate 
of Cambridge. An excellent reading-room is supplied 
with standard English literature and newspapers. 
There is a billiard-room also. 

From the smallness of the island and its elevation 
above the sea, St. Kitt's is extremely dry and healthy. 
The thermometer ranges from 80° to 90° in the shade. 
There is no winter; August to November is deemed 
the least healthy period. The dews are not heavy; 
but the island is subject to storms and earthquakes. 



ST. CHRISTOPHER, 



205 



James Colquhoun, Esq., is the Agent for the 
island in London. 

Area. 

68 Square Miles. 171 Acres. 
Population, July 1838. 

Male?. Females. Males, Females. 

Free. . . . 4,952 5,483. Apprenticed. . . . 5,739 6,308, 
Grand Total 22,482. 

Shipping. 



Inwards. Ships. 

1840 454 

1841 284 

1842.. ..469 



Tons. Men. 

21,790 2,472 

12,730 1,427 

23,782 2,535 



Outwards. Ships. 

1840 ..453 

1841 ..300 

1842 ..475 



Tons. Men. 

21,239 2,449 

14,741 1,581 

22,723 2,507 



Collective value of Imports and Exports, 1840, 
Imports £134,732. Exports £217,403. 

Coin and Paper in Circulation. 

Coin, about £2,000 sterling. Paper, Notes of Colonial 
Bank, amounting to about 43*10,000. 

Average course of Exchange for three years, 1840-41-42, 
per £100 sterling : 

1840 ^460 to ^480 

1841 465 to 480 

1842 465 to 480 

Wages for Labour. 

1840. 1841, 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. £ 8. d. 

Domestic, per month 0 18 0 . . 0 18 0 . . 1 0 10 

Predial, per day 0 1 0£. . 0 1 0*. . 0 1 0£ 

Trades „ 0 2 1..0 2 1..0 2 1 



206 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Prices of Provisions. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Wheaten Bread, per lb. ..0 0 4 ..0 0 4 .,0 0 4 



Beef „ ..0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 

Mutton „ ....0 0 9..0 0 9..0 0 9 

Pork „ .. .0 0 6i..O 0 6J. . 0 0 6| 

Rice per 100 lb. 1 0 6 . . 1 5 0 . . 1 5 0 

Coffee per lb. ..0 1 1 ..0 1 1 ..0 1 1 

Tea „ ....0 6 3..0 6 3 ..0 6 3 

Sugar per 100 lbs. 1 7 0..1 7 0..1 7 0 



Schools and Scholars. 

47 Sunday and Daily Schools. 
Returns of Scholars imperfect. 

Slave Compensation to St. Kitt's, £331,630 10s. 7d. 

Newspapers published at St. Kitt's : — 

St. Kittfs Gazette, at Basseterre, Friday, by J. A. Howe. 
Established 1828. 

St. Kitfs Advertiser, ditto, Tuesday, Mrs. E. Cable. Esta- 
blished 1813. 



( 207 ) 




THE VIRGIN ISLES. 
TORTOLA, 

Tortola is the central, and chief of the English 
islands, of this group. It is composed of about 30 
isles, islets, and large rocks, whose rocky coasts were 
formerly notorious because of shipwrecks. But na- 
ture has arranged them so as to form a grand basin 
in the midst, where ships may lie at anchor, land- 
locked, and sheltered from every wind. 

The other islands belonging to Great Britain in 
this group, are called Virgin Gorda, Josvan Dykes, 
Guana Isle, Beef and Thatch Islands, Anegada (or 
the drowned island), Nicker, Prickly Pear, and 
Mosquito Islands, the Cammanoes, Scrub, and Dog 
islands, the Fallen City (two rocky islets close to- 
gether, at a distance resembling ruins), the Round 
Rock, Ginger, Cooper's Salt Island, Peter's Island, 
and the dead chest. 



208 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



These islands, except Anegada, are high and 
bold, and may be seen 9 to 10 leagues off. They 
appear at a distance, as if united together; but there 
are many deep channels between them, through 
which those acquainted sail with safety. In all 
these channels there is the greatest plenty of fish, 
which may be caughc by hook a*nd line, or with the 
seine. 

Tortola is about 18 miles long from E. to W., and 
7 in its greatest breadth. It was first settled by a 
party of Dutch bucaniers. These, in 1666, were 
driven out by others, who took possession in the 
name of the king of England. Protection being 
afforded to them, Tortola was soon afterwards an- 
nexed to the Government of the so called Leeward 
Islands. The first assembly met on the 1st of Feb- 
ruary, 1774, under a proclamation, dated November, 
1773, issued in consequence of a petition from the 
inhabitants, who, in consideration of being allowed 
a house of assembly, had promised to grant an import 
of A\ per cent, to the king. That grant was the 
first act of their legislature. 

The chief town, also called Tortola, is situate on 
the south side of the island, close to the water's edge, 
in the western bight of a magnificent harbour, which 
extends 15 miles in length and ?>\ in breadth. This 
harbour is perfectly land-locked, and was the resort 
of large fleets of vessels waiting for convoy in time 
of war. It is large enough to shelter 400 ships at 
one time. 

This island is very rugged and mountainous, in- 
differently watered, and rather unhealthy. There 
are several waste spots with zigzag paths skirting the 
mountain sides which render the interior difficult of 



TORTOLA. 



209 



access. It, however, produces cotton of superior 
quality, sugar, aud rum. The fruits are few in variety 
and indifferent, apples excepted. 

The steamer's boat takes you on shore; the luggage 
is examined on the wharf, and duty charged on articles 
that do not appear to have been worn. Passengers 
should bring British gold and silver or Spanish dol- 
lars and doubloons. There is no bank in the island. 

As very few strangers visit this island, tavern ac- 
commodation is not the best; there is one hotel very 
near the landing-place respectably conducted. The 
cost of living is from 2\ to 3 dollars per day. 

There is little worth seeing in Tortola; but the reefs 
and caverns of the island of Anegada about 40 miles 
distant, the copper mines, and natural baths of sea 
water, so closely sheltered by large rocks that the 
heat of the sun does not penetrate, in Virgin Gordon 
about 18 miles distant, are represented as worthy of 
a visft. 

Baptisms. Marriages. Deaths. 

1840 251 33 94 

1841 157 14 38 

1842 264 38 85 

Schools, 

Including Virgin Island, Salt Island, and Anageda. 

9 in 1840. Number of Scholars 452 

10 in 1841. ,, * 668 

10 in 1842. ,, 684 

"Wesley an. 

7 Schools. Number of Scholars. . 692 Expense, ^483 12s. 7d. 
Shipping. 

Inwards. Ships. Tons. Men. Outwards. Ships. Tons. Men. 

1840 455 4,051 1,325 1840 457 4,015 1,326 

1841 481 4,033 1,338 



1842.. .. 577 3,792 1,48 



1841.. .. 519 4,205 1,458 
1842.. .. 605 3,883 1,538 



210 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Currency. 

Coins.* — Doubloons pass for £6 12 0 

Dollars (Spanish round) 0 8 3 

Half-crown (English) 0 5 0 

Shilling ,, 0 2 0 

Sixpence 0 1 0 

Wages for Labour. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 



£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Domestic, per month 1 0 0. . 0 16 6. . 0 16 6 

Predial, per day 0 0 6..0 0 6..0 0 6 

Trades „ 0 2 6. . 0 2 6. . 0 2 6 

Note. — Those employed on Estates are allowed a House and 

Provision Grounds, also Pasture for their Cattle, free of 
expense. 



Prices of Provisions. 

1840. 1841. 1842. 

£ s. d. £ s. d. £ s. d. 

Beef per lb. ..0 0 6 0 0 6 0 0 6 

Mutton ,, ..0 0 71 0 0 7i 0 0 6 

Pork ..0 0 6.. ..0 0 6.. ..0 0 6 

Rice ..0 0 3.. ..0 0 3. . . . 0 0 3 

Coffee „ ..0 1 0.. ..0 1 0.. ..0 1 0 

Tea „ ..0 5 6. . . . 0 5 6.. ..0 5 6 

Sugar ,, ..0 0 6. . . . 0 0 6. . . . 0 0 6 

Salt per barrel.. 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 

Wheaten Bread varies according to the price of Flour. Price 
of Flour not stated. 

Collective value of Imports and Exports, 1840. 
Imports ,£10,964 Exports. ....... £12,966 



Amount of Slave Compensation to the Virgin Isles, was 
£72,940 8s. 5d. 

There is no local Newspaper published in Tortola. 



( 211 ) 



ST. THOMAS. 

One of the Virgin Islands, belonging to the Danes, 
in lat. 18° 20' N., long. 65° W. Its area is estimated 
at 37 square miles, and population at about 7,000, 
of which 500 are whites, 1,500 free blacks, and re- 
mainder slaves. St. Thomas has long been, and still 
continues to be, one of the principal emporiums in 
the West Indies. It owes this distinction partly to 
its convenient situation, partly to its spacious and 
safe harbour at St. Thomas, on the south side of the 
island, but principally to the moderation of its import 
duties, which vary from 1 to lj per Cent. St. 
Thomas has in consequence, become a depot for the 
supply of the neighbouring islands; goods being sent 
there to be warehoused till opportunity offers for con- 
veying them to their final destination. The principal 
articles of importation are manufactured goods, chiefly 
from England, but also from Germany, and other 
countries of Europe, and provisions and lumber from 
the United States. There are large fire-proof store- 
houses, dwellings, and long wharfs where large vessels 
lie in perfect safety. 

As you approach the harbour and enter, the scene 
presented to the view is one of the most striking in 
the West Indies. The harbour is formed by a narrow 
inlet of the sea, and is a land-locked bay within, 
remarkably commodious as a station for shipping. 

On the left of the entrance, is a lofty hill on which 
a fort is built; and on two elevated spots on the 
right, are seen the remains of fortresses, once the 
strongholds of the bucaniers, who in days of yore 

p 2 



212 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



invested these islands. The town is neatly built on 
three hills running in a parallel line at the northern 
or inland extremity of the bay; and these are sur- 
mounted by picturesque conical mountains. 

Most of the houses are of brick, built and tiled after 
the Dutch fashion, but of only one story, from the 
want of a good foundation, as it generally happens 
that before they dig to the depth of three feet, water 
and quicksands are found. The steamers come in to 
about half a mile of the landing-place. Shore-boats 
are off to them immediately. These are all numbered 
and under strict regulations. The charge for landing 
is about Is., or Is. 3d. British, for one person and 
luggage. 

The Custom House does not in any manner what- 
ever interfere with or examine passengers or their 
luggage; who are permitted to land so soon as the 
harbour-master has visited the vessel, and finds no 
dangerous sickness on board. 

Passports on arriving are not needed; but pas- 
sengers lodging on shore for one night or more, are 
required to take out passports from the police before 
leaving. The charges are, for Europe, or the United 
States, 2 dollars; to the West India islands, &c, 
1 dollar. 

The current monies are South American dou- 
bloons, dollars and parts, and Danish colonial small 
coins. Other coins are received generally at a fair 
exchange, the average value of the sovereign being 
4 dollars 80 cents. The money of account, among 
merchants and bankers, is dollars and cents. 

There are two banks: the Bank of St. Thomas, 
and the Colonial Bank. 

There are several respectable hotels or boarding- 



ST. THOMAS. 



213 



houses. The best, which is one of the largest and 
handsomest in the West Indies, is situated close 
to the principal landing-place. The usual charge 
for one person is 2\ dollars per day for board and 
lodging; to which wines, &c. a must be added. There 
is also an additional charge for a private parlour 
when required. The water made use of for drinking 
is rain-water, collected in good tanks belonging to 
the house. Ice is abundant, being brought from 
America. The generality of passengers dine at an 
ordinary, and find well-supplied tables, with good 
cooking and attendance. There are other houses at 
lower charges, but the company is not so select. 

Carriages and horses are kept for hire; the charge 
is from 2 to 4 dollars for a drive of three hours, 
(which should be taken before sunrise,) during which 
time the greater part of the island may be visited. 
St. Thomas is under the authority of the Governor- 
General of St. Croix, the chief of the Danish West 
India Islands. 

With St. Croix the steamers do not communicate; 
but there is communication, at least three times 
a-week, by means of schooners, the fare being 4 
dollars each way. There is also frequent intercourse 
with various European ports, such as Hamburgh, 
Havre-de-Grace, Bordeaux, Marseilles, Genoa; and 
with New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Bal- 
timore, in the United States; by regular traders, fine 
brigs and ships of superior description, and having 
in general good accommodations for passengers. 
Schooners for all parts of Porto Rico, Venezuela and 
Curacoa, are constantly running backward and for- 
ward. The Royal Mail Steam Packet Company's 
ships are the only steamers visiting the port. The 



214 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



island does not possess any objects of general in- 
terest; but to an European, the rides about the 
island must be interesting. 

There are Lutheran, Protestant, Moravian, and 
Roman Catholic Churches, and a Jewish Synagogue. 
Instruction is given in the Danish, English, and 
French languages, and also by the Moravians, in 
Creole Dutch. The schools, being chiefly for the 
children of slaves, are not good. 

Strolling companies of equestrians, sometimes visit 
St. Thomas, but there is no theatre. An excellent 
news-room is maintained by public subscription, 
having all the principal periodicals, English, French 
and American, together with the daily London news- 
papers, and Danish, German and French publica- 
tions. Strangers are introduced by members, who 
insert their names and designations in a book kept 
for that purpose. 

About 200 regular Danish troops are in garrison; 
and every free male inhabitant is obliged to serve in 
the militia corps from the age of 16 to 60. The 
thermometer ranges from 74° to 90° in the shade at 
noon; at night it sometimes goes as low as 68°. 
The rainy seasons are not regular, but much rain 
falls from August to February: August, September, 
and October are hurricane months. The island is 
esteemed healthy at all times. Dews are unknown 
to any great extent, but are greatest at or near the 
full moon. Temperance and rising early, with 
regular gentle exercise, are the best means of pre- 
serving health. There is a respectable body of 
medical men, who have degrees from the College at 
Copenhagen, and some have studied at Edinburgh 
and elsewhere. 



ST. THOMAS. 



215 



Robert Comrie, Esq., manager of the Colonial 
Bank, is also agent for the Royal Mail Steam Packet 
Company. 

A Venezulean schooner receives the La Guayra, 
and other mails of the middle of the month, from 
Europe, at St. Thomas, and proceeds direct with 
them to La Guayra, returning again to St. Thomas. 

Imports of St. Thomas, 1840. 



Ships. Tons. 

From Great Britain 42 9,208 

France 38 6,944 

Spain 7 520 

Italy 9 1,288 

Hamburg and Altona 32 5,890 

Flensburg 12 2,265 

Bremen 9 1,432 

Holland 2 306 

U. S. and British America .. 217 30,279 

Venezuela and New Granada. . 55 4,642 

British West India Islands ... 600 9,923 

French ,, ... 55 2,311 

Spanish ,, ... 377 11,981 

Danish ,, ... 321 13,637 

Dutch ,, ... 99 3,148 

Swedish ,, ... 18 569 

Hayti 43 1,813 



Totals 1,936 106,156 



Besides a great number of Vessels neither landing nor re- 
ceiving goods, and being in that case free of Port Charges. 



( 216 ) 



ST. JUAN'S, PORTO RICO. 

This island is a colony of Spain, lying between lat. 
17° 55' and 18° 30' N., and long. 65° 40' and 67° 20 ; 
W., being in length 100 miles, and breadth 38 miles. 
A chain of mountains runs east and west throughout 
its extent, with branches diverging to the north and 
south. The whole are covered with wood; and in 
the intervals are fertile valleys and plains, watered 
by many rivulets, in the sands of which it is said 
gold-dust has been found. 

The highest summits of the mountains are called 
the Peaks of Layoonita; they are often covered with 
snow, and may be seen from a great distance. 

A vast quantity of cattle is reared and sent to 
other islands. 

Porto Rico has suffered much from hurricanes. 

The surface, which is finely diversified, is well 
watered and the soil is generally rich and fertile. 
There are few or no indigenous quadrupeds; and 
scarcely any of the feathered tribes to be found in the 
forests. The birds are few both in number and 
species; you may travel whole leagues without seeing 
a bird or even hearing a chirp. Almost all the other 
West India islands are infested with snakes and 
other noxious reptiles. Here there are none. But 
rats, of an enormous size, infest the island and do 
great injury to the sugar canes. 

The forests in the interior supply timber of the 
best quality both for ship and house building; and 
to prevent their decrease, the government has ordered 



ST. JTJAn's, PORTO RICO. 



217 



that three trees should be planted for each one cut 
down. 

A large proportion of the free inhabitants are 
coloured; but the law knows no distinction between 
the white and coloured returier; and this circum- 
stance, as well as the whites being in the habit of 
freely intermixing with the people of colour, has pre- 
vented the growth of those prejudices and antipathies 
that prevail between the white, black, and coloured 
population in the United States, and in the English 
and French islands. 

Mr. Turnbull says: — "The most remarkable fact 
connected with the history and the present state of 
Porto Rico is, that the fields are cultivated, and sugar 
manufactured, by the hands of white men, under a 
tropical sun. It is very possible that this might 
never have occurred had not the island been treated 
as a penal settlement at an early period of its history. 
The convicts themselves were condemned to hard 
labour as a part of their punishment; and when the 
term of their sentence expired, they were compelled 
to continue it in order to obtain the means of sub- 
sistence." The population in 1836, the last return 
published by the Board of Trade, was as follows: — 



Before the emancipation of the coloured race in 
Jamaica, the proportion between the white inhab- 



Whites 

Free Mulattos 
Free Blacks . 
Slaves 



188,869 
101,275 
25,124 
41,818 



Total 



357,086 



218 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



itants and the rest of the population was nearly the 
reverse to that of Porto Rico. 

The town of St. Juan's is the capital, and is 
situated on the north side of the island, on a penin- 
sula joined to the main land by a narrow isthmus. 
The fortifications are very strong; the town, which 
stands on a pretty steep declivity, is well built, clean, 
and contains from 20,000 to 30,000 inhabitants. It 
is the residence of the Governor, and the see of a 
bishop. The harbour has a striking resemblance to 
Havana, and but little inferior. 

The steamer comes to within a mile of the custom- 
house wharf, where passengers are landed by shore- 
boats, at about one dollar each, with luggage. It 
is examined there, and no duty is charged on arti- 
cles that fairly come within the denomination of 
luggage. 

The current money is Macuquino, which is the 
original Spanish silver coin cut into quarters and 
eighths, much worn from age and use : it varies much 
in value. Passengers should take Spanish or Patriot 
gold or silver, which are recently exchangable for the 
above coin. The Colonial Bank is the only Bank in 
the island. 

There are two respectable hotels, the Hotel de 
Madrid, in the Plaza Principal, and the boarding- 
house, kept by Mrs. Storer, an Englishwoman, in 
the Calle de los Ciiarteles. The cost of living in 
either, is about a dollar and a half per day. Both 
have good water and are near the landing-place. 

Horses are exclusively used in the city and its 
neighbourhood. The charge for a saddle-horse is 
about 2 dollars per day. Very few wheel carriages 
are kept, and none can be hired. 



ST. JUAN's, PORTO RICO. 



219 



Passports are required both on landing and depart- 
ing. If landing and going into the interior, the charge 
is 1 dollar; if beyond seas, 4 dollars. They are 
obtained at the Secretary's ofhce, and personal at- 
tendance is not always necessary. The stranger has, 
a few hours after arrival, to present himself at the 
Fortaleza, and produce a surety for good conduct 
while in the island. 

There are some good public buildings, including the 
bishop's palace and seminary, the royal military hos- 
pital with 350 beds, public gaol, house of correction, 
a handsome theatre, town-house with a magnificent 
public hall, several convents, &c. The government- 
house though old and sombre-looking has some fine 
apartments. They have also a library and reading- 
room; a casino, in which billiards and other games 
are played; and a coffee-house which is, to a certain 
extent, used as an exchange, and much frequented. 

The fortifications, which are perhaps as strong as 
any in the world, are generally the chief objects of 
interest to the stranger. There is also a public walk, 
where a military band plays frequently during the 
week. 

The country in the immediate neighbourhood of 
the city is uninteresting, but the interior is beauti- 
fully diversified, and the pasturage is very rich. 

A journey across the country is performed on 
horseback in about two days, at the expense of 30 
dollars, including a guide. There are no carriage- 
roads in the interior. 

The houses of all classes in the country are 
usually built of wood. The windows have no glass, 
but are shut by sliding boards; so that when it 
rains, or when the wind blows with violence, the 



220 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



family remains in darkness. There are no inns for 
travellers either in town or country. 

The Roman Catholic is the only form of worship 
tolerated. There is a cathedral and three other 
churches. 

The government is that of the old Spanish regime 
— military despotism. Porto Rico is governed by a 
Captain- General, whose authority is supreme in 
military affairs, and who is president of the royal 
audiencia for civil matters. There is a garrison of 
from 2500 to 3000 men in the city. 

The only steam communication with other ports is 
that afforded by the Royal Mail Steam Packet Com- 
pany. A monthly sailing packet arrives from Spain, 
carrying the mails, calling at St. Juan's on her way 
to Havana; the charge to which latter place, in 
the best cabin, is 50 dollars. 

The thermometer ranges from 75° to 85° in the 
winter, and 85° to 90° in the summer months, at 
mid-day in the shade. The rainy season is from July 
to December. The winter, which includes November, 
December, January, and February, is perhaps the 
most healthy for Europeans. The dews in the country 
are heavy, and it is desirable to avoid exposure to 
them. 

There are several Spanish physicians and one 
English. The latter, Dr. Thomas Armstrong, is a 
very skilful man, enjoying high repute, and has the 
beet practice in the island. 

John Lindegren, Esq., is the British Consul newly 
appointed. 

R. D. Jacob, Esq. is the Royal Mail Steam Packet 
Company's Agent at St. Juan's, Porto Rico. 



( 221 ) 



ST. JACO DE CUBA 

Is the capital of the eastern department of the island 
of Cuba, and lies at the south-eastern shore of that 
island; it was the capital of Cuba till the beginning 
of the 18th century, when Havana was raised to 
that dignity. 

The high mountains behind St. Jago have been 
distinguished at a considerable distance from sea; 
indeed there is evidence that they have been seen 
from several points on the north side of Jamaica, or 
nearly 100 miles distant; and it has been remarked 
that this clearness of the atmosphere was a certain 
prognostication of a hurricane. These high lands 
are called the Cobre or Copper Mountains, about 1 1 
miles from the town of St. Jago. The harbour of 
St. Jago is technically called a blind harbour, and 
sailing vessels must not attempt an entrance without 
a leading wind; a steamer, however, may make more 
bold, and enter at all times. 

The distance from Kingston to St. Jago is about 
190 miles The steamer goes up to within half a 
mile of the town, and passengers are generally landed 
by shore-boats, for which the charge is regulated, by 
custom, at half a dollar for one person with luggage. 
Passengers' luggage is visited by the custom-house 
officers on landing and embarking, at a guard-house 
distant a few paces from the landing place. Wearing 
apparel imported, and such articles as are generally 
conveyed in passengers' baggage, are not subject to 
duty. There is a small duty, 5 reals per mille, on 
cigars exported in luggage. 



222 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The current money is Spanish and Mexican dollars 
and doubloons. Spanish doubloons are current at 
17 dollars each; South American doubloons at 16 
dollars each. There are no banks at this port. 

There are two good and well-conducted hotels; 
Madame Sausse's and Beranger's. They are both 
within a short distance of the landing place. The 
expense of living at either of these places is 2 dollars 
per day, including claret wine. Carriages are not 
to be had on hire; but saddle-horses or mules can 
be hired at about 4 dollars per day. 

Passengers arriving by steamer to remain, must 
be furnished with a passport, vise by the Spanish 
Consul, if given at a foreign place. But persons 
arriving and departing by the same steamer, are 
allowed to land without passports, on the commander 
pledging himself for them, which is done by word 
to the boarding officer. The object is to prevent the 
landing of Abolitionists. 

Besides the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company's 
steamers, which afford a communication to all parts 
of the West Indies and to Europe, there is a 
Spanish steamer, that arrives here the 7th and 
departs on the 14th of every month for Havana, 
touching at Manzanillo, Santa Cruz, Trinidad de 
Cuba, Cienfuegos, and Batabano, whence passengers 
proceed to Havana, overland by railroad, 42 miles. 
The whole passage is performed in 6 days, including 
landing and stoppages. Passage and fare in the 
cabin, for the whole voyage is 50 dollars; separate 
state rooms, containing two berths, 125 dollars. 

There is nothing worth visiting in the town, if we 
except the cathedral. It is a massive pile, built in 
the last century, on the same place where stood the 



ST. JAGO DE CUBA. 



223 



first metropolitan temple, destroyed by the earth- 
quake of 1766. The danger from the same cause 
has induced the architect to reduce the proportion in 
height of the new cathedral, by which the graceful 
harmony of the whole is somewhat impaired. None 
but Catholic places of worship are permitted in the 
Island of Cuba. There are in St. Jago several 
primary schools for Spanish children: a seminary 
for young men preparing for the church; and two 
colleges, where the English, French, and Spanish 
languages are taught, with most other branches of 
education. 

They have a theatre, where the Spanish drama is 
sometimes represented. 

The city is garrisoned by two regiments of 
Spanish troops. 

The constitution of Spain does not extend to 
Cuba: it is under the government of the old Spanish 
regime. 

The average range of the thermometer in the 
shade is 84° in the summer, and 78° in the winter. 
The winter is from December to February, and is 
generally dry, with occasional drizzling rain, when 
the wind sets in from the north. It is the most 
healthy season. The dews are light, and there is 
no danger from them. 

The Port is well provided with medical men. 
Those in most repute are Drs. Forbes and Touvin. 

The most interesting place in the vicinity, is the 
village of Cobre, distant four leagues from town, 
where are rich copper mines, worked by British 
capitalists. Some of the specimeus of the ore afford 
not less than 53 per cent, of pure metal. The or- 
dinary produce is not more than 27 per cent.; but 



224 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



even that proportion is so great as to ensure large 
profits to the proprietors in competing with the 
produce of our native mines in Cornwall, where 1 0, 
or even 8, per cent, is considered sufficient to afford 
a remunerating return. This competition could not 
be maintained if the produce of the Cuba mines 
did not reach 18, or at least 16 per cent., in con- 
sequence of the expense attending the working of the 
mines in a tropical climate, together with the heavy 
charges for freight, commission, and insurance. The 
average exports from these mines is 24,000 tons per 
annum. 

In extent, magnitude of works, skill, and science 
with which they are carried on, they are scarcely 
surpassed by any in the world. A rail-road is 
forming, for bringing the ore direct from the mines 
to the point of embarkation in the Bay of St. Jago. 
It is expected to be completed in a few months. 

The recent history of this mine is somewhat re- 
markable. It was known that in the palmy days 
of Spanish greatness, the neighbouring mountains 
had been explored to a very considerable extent; and, 
indeed, the fact is sufficiently indicated by the very 
name of the town of Cobre, which is certainly not a 
place of modern origin. For more than a hundred 
years, however, the workings had been abandoned; 
and it was by mere accident some eight or ten years 
ago, that Mr. Hardy was induced, on visiting the 
neighbourhood for quite another purpose, to carry 
off some specimens of the refuse, thrown up from the 
old workings, in order to subject them to analysis. 
He had, in fact, been employed by his father, a man 
of large property, and now one of his partners in the 
mine, to visit the island in order to ascertain the 



ST. JAGO DE CUBA. 



225 



probability of recovering a mortgage debt, which he 
held over a neighbouring property. 

"In this country," observes Mr. Turnbull, "the 
happiest combination of capital, enterprise, and 
skill, is not sufficient to insure success in any si- 
milar undertaking. It was necessary, of course, 
either to effect a purchase of the soil, with its ac- 
cessorial rights, or to admit its proprietor into the 
secret, and allow him a reasonable proportion of 
the profits, arising from a discovery, which, even 
had he known it, he probably had not the means 
of fructifying. Another desideratum, not less in- 
dispensable, remained to be accomplished; and that 
was to obtain the consent of the government to 
exercise the privilege of mining, which, in the domi- 
nions of Her Catholic Majesty, is not carried, it 
seems, by the mere right of property in the soil. 
For this purpose, a vast deal of influence is required 
at head quarters; so great as to have made it neces- 
sary, or at least advisable, for the three individuals 
who alone were directly, or substantially, interested 
in the success of the undertaking — the discoverer, 
the capitalist, and the proprietor of the soil, — ta 
admit a fourth person to an equal participation of 
the profits, from the mere fact of his possessing the 
necessary degree of influence at the Havana, or 
Madrid, to overcome the obstacles which would in- 
fallibly arise as soon as the enterprise presented any 
reasonable prospect of success. 

"Two powerful steam engines are at present em- 
ployed on the works, the chief duties of which are to 
stamp the mineral into a sort of coarse powder, when 
the richer part of the ore is separated from the refuse, 

a 



226 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



as well as that can be done by hand, with the aid of 
various mechanical contrivances. When in a state 
sufficiently pure for exportation, the ore is put into 
bags or baskets, and carried by beasts of burden a 
distance of twelve miles, to Santiago, at an average 
cost of about a dollar a hundred weight. The mule, 
the horse, and the camel, are the animals usually 
employed in this laborious operation; and it would 
be well for those of the nobler race, whether hybrid 
or pure, if they possessed the prudence or the instinct 
of the camel, which teaches it to lie down when 
overloaded, and refuse to proceed until its burden 
is so reduced as to make it compatible with its 
strength. The poor horse, however, and even the 
mule, stagger on to the last, under the excessive 
burdens which are heaped upon them, the average 
not being less than 224 English pounds." 

To the eastward of St. Jago rises the chain of 
mountains called the Sierra Maestra, where the best 
coffee properties are located, at from 4 to 10 leagues 
from town. The scenery is equal in grandeur and 
romantic interest to that of Port Royal, or Blue 
Mountains in Jamaica. There are no inns to accom- 
modate travellers; but such as have letters of intro- 
duction to the planters, are kindly and hospitably 
entertained by them. 

St. Jago is the most ancient city in Cuba, and 
the seat of an archbishop. It is 252 miles from 
Porto Principe, where the Real Audiencia, or Supreme 
Tribunal is held, as regards the eastern department of 
Cuba. Travellers to Porto Principe proceed on horses 
back ; or they may go to Santa Cruz by steamer, where 
the distance by land to Porto Principe is 84 miles. 



ST. JAGO BE CUBA. 



227 



St. Jago is distant from Havana 702 miles. 

The Consul-General for Spain in London, Don 
J. M. Barrero, is also the Consul for Cuba; Messrs. 
"Wright, Brooks, and Co. are the Agents for the 
Royal Mail Steam Packet Company at St. Jago, 



SUB UMBRA FLOREO. 



BELIZE, HONDURAS. 

This possession of Great Britain, though one of 
considerable extent and importance, has not yet been 
dignified with the name of Colony. On one occasion 
it was expressly decided not to be entitled to the 
appellation of a territory belonging to His Majesty, at 
least so far as the Navigation Acts were concerned. 
(Chitty on Commerce, vol. 1, p. 636.) According 
to this decision ships built there would not be privi- 
leged to engage in the direct trade between the United 
Kingdom and the British possessions in America. 
The recent Navigation Acts have removed this dis- 
ability, and have in terms recognized the settlements 
at Honduras as "British." The 3 and 4 Wm. IV. 
c. 54, s. 14, expressly enacts "that all ships built in 
the British settlements at Honduras, and owned and 
navigated as British ships, shall be entitled to the 



BELIZE, HONDURAS. 



229 



privileges of British registered ships in all direct trade 
between the United Kingdom or the British posses- 
sions in America and the said settlements. 53 

The distinction seems to be, that such settlements 
or possessions are in a state in which, with regard to 
trade they are considered in one character, and with 
regard to legal government in another. 

The settlement of Honduras is situated on the 
main land of central America, in the province of 
Yucatan, on the western shores of the Caribbean Sea, 
between 17° aud 19° N. lat., and 89° and 90° W. 
long. Its utmost extent of coast from the Rio Hondo 
on the north, to the River Sarsboon on the south, is 
250 miles. Its mean breadth, according to the most 
recent calculations, is 150, — thus making a total of 
37,500 square miles. For upwards of two centuries 
it has furnished Great Britain with large supplies of 
logwood and mahogany. 

The Honduras coast was discovered by Columbus 
in 1502. Its period of early settlement is very vague. 
At first it was occasionally resorted to by mahogany 
and other wood-cutters, whose chief place of residence 
was then a small island called St. George's Key. 

From the earliest period of the settlement to 
1763, the right of cutting logwood in the Bay of 
Campeachy was a matter of vehement dispute be- 
tween the English and Spanish governments on 
behalf of their respective subjects. On the general 
pacification, which took place in that year, the King 
of Spain agreed to allow the settlers to reside within 
a certain distance, on condition that all the fortresses 
then existing should be destroyed, and that no other 
should be erected. On his part he undertook, in case 
of a war, to grant six months for the removal of 
British property. 



230 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



In 1779 this undertaking was grossly violated by 
the Spaniards. At the close of the war which then 
ensued, the settlers, though they obtained no in- 
demnity for the previous injury, were re-established 
on the same terms as formerly, and the rivers Belize 
and Hondo were assigned as their limits. 

Belize owes its origin to a Scotch corsair chief, of 
the name of Wallace, a native of Falkland in 
Kinross-shire. At the time that the bucaniers were 
driven from Tortuga, a small island situated a few 
miles north of St. Domingo, Wallace— to escape 
from the just vengeance of the Spaniards — fled for 
security amongst the numerous islands on the coast 
of Yucatan, and finally settled at the mouth of the 
river, now called Belize, or Balize. Here, after many 
vicissitudes both by sea and land, Wallace fixed his 
residence, erected a few log huts and a small fortalice, 
which stood on the site now occupied by the premises 
of Messrs. Botias and Delandre. 

From this adventurous chief the town derived its 
name, its orthography amongst the Spaniards was 
originally Walis, from which it was changed by a 
common corruption in their language to Balis, and 
was lastly softened down by the English to Belize, 
which it now retains. The Spanish b is pronounced 
as v. 

In the year 1765 the inhabitants agreed to a code 
of regulations presented to them by Sir William 
Burnaby, the commanding ofTicer of His Majesty's 
ships on the Jamaica station, to the strict perform- 
ance of the articles of which code they bound 
themselves by an instrument under their hands and 
seals. 

In pursuance of these regulations five of the 



BELIZE, HONDURAS. 



231 



principal inhabitants were chosen from amongst 
themselves as magistrates, who were invested with 
power and authority to hold courts of justice, and to 
try and determine all disputes. A jury of thirteen 
was chosen in the same manner for their assistance, 
aud the determination of this court was declared to 
be final. 

They further covenanted together to abide by and 
obey all such orders and regulations as might there- 
after be made by the justices, in full council, being 
first approved of by a majority of the inhabitants , 
and that the commanding officer for the time being 
of any of His Majesty's ships of war which might 
be sent thither, should have full power to enforce 
and put the above into execution. Regulations were 
at the same time agreed to respecting the levying and 
collection of taxes, the cutting of logwood, &c. &c. 

This code, which bears Sir William Burnaby's 
name, was printed at the expense of the settlement 
in 1809, with such additional regulations and al- 
terations of the original articles as had in the 
intermediate time been found necessary. 

The course which is generally pursued when an in- 
dividual of the community is desirous of introducing 
a new regulation which is to undergo the solemnity 
of an "enactment," is as follows: — Such individual 
causes a public notice or requisition to be posted at 
the court-house at Belize, calling a meeting of the 
magistrates and inhabitants of the place, on the 
particular day expressed in the notice, which it is 
understood must be stuck up at least twenty-one 
days before the day named for the meeting. On the 
arrival of the day appointed for the purpose, the 
magistrates and inhabitants assemble, when the pro- 



232 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



position contained in the notice is discussed, and the 
majority of those present on the occasion determine 
the question ; after which, if the measure agreed to 
at the meeting receive the assent of the Superin- 
tendent, it is considered a law of the settlement, but 
not otherwise. 

In this anomalous state of things, it is a matter 
of considerable surprise that the meetings dignified 
with the name of courts should be conducted with a 
regularity and decor um which will bear no disad- 
vantageous comparison with the proceedings, in this 
respect, of the regularly constituted tribunals in 
the other colonies. 

The settlement at Honduras is governed by an 
officer styled a Superintendent, who is appointed by 
the Crown. A constitution, sanctioned by an officer 
in commission under His Majesty, framed many 
years ago, has been since, tacitly at least, recognized 
by the Crown, and is still acted upon ; and as a 
decisive mark of the subordination of the settlement 
to the power of this country, appeals are entertained 
by the Privy Council from the decisions of the courts 
in the settlement, one of which has been constituted 
by two acts of the British Parliament. 

The town of Belize, which is situated at the 
mouth of the river of the same name, is the only 
regular establishment which the English settlers 
have formed in this country. It is immediately open 
to the sea ; and, though the situation is low, the 
groups of lofty cocoa-nut trees, with the thickly 
interspersed and lively foliage of the tamarind, con- 
tribute to give a very picturesque and pleasing effect 
to the dwellings of the inhabitants, independent of 
the advantage that is conferred by their grateful 



BELIZE, HONDURAS. 



233 



shade. Beyond Belize is an immense swamp, which 
extends many miles back ; it is overflowed during 
the rains, and in other seasons abounds with stagnant 
waters. The number of houses of all descriptions, 
contained in Belize, may be numbered at about 400. 
Many of these, particularly such as are owned by 
the opulent merchants, are spacious, commodious, 
and well-finished. They are built entirely of wood, 
and generally raised, 8 or 10 feet from the ground, 
on pillars of mahogany. The stores and offices are 
uniformly on the lower story; the dining and sleeping 
apartments on the upper. Every habitation has, 
likewise, its upper and lower piazzas, as indispensable 
appendages. Belize is defended by a fort, called 
Fort George, on an islet to the East. 

The town being situated as described, an inter- 
course with the interior country, by land, is extremely 
difficult; no road to it having been formed, travelling 
can, therefore, be performed only by water; an ex- 
tent, however, of 4 or 5 miles has been cut through 
the swamp, which, in fine weather, affords a pleasant 
ride on horseback; the sides of this road being lined 
profusely with a most agreeable variety of foliage. 

Mahogany of a proper size — hitherto the staple 
commodity of this place — if not now exhausted in 
the forests within the British limits, is only to be 
found in very inaccessible portions of the settlement, 
and in situations from whence it could not be brought 
out to make it remunerative. 

Under these circumstances, the attention of the 
inhabitants has been latterly turned to the cultivation 
of the soil, for the purpose of raising and exporting 
the various articles of tropical produce, for the growth 
of which the country is eminently adapted. The 



234 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



position of the settlement is favourable for the intro- 
duction of British manufactures into central America. 
The Rio Hondo, the Belize river, the New river, the 
Siboon, and others, penetrate into the interior almost 
in parallel lines to each other, and except in one or 
two instances, are navigable by boats for 150 miles 
from their mouths. 

The public buildings of Belize consist of St. John's 
Church, erected in 1812; the Government House, 
commenced in 1814; the Honduras Free School, 
established in 1816; the Bridge across the river, 
begun in 1816, and finished in two years; the Court 
House, erected in 181 9, in which year the Supreme 
Court was established by Act of Parliament. 

The population of the settlement amounts to about 
S,000, of whom about 200 are white. 

The people of colour, of whom the population 
chiefly consists, are a fine race, and present a re- 
markable contrast to the slaves of Havana, being very 
far superior in form and features. They were all 
declared freemen on the 1st of August, 1838. 

The climate of this country is superior to that of 
the West India islands generally; and persons, whose 
health and constitutions have become impaired, from 
the effects of the latter, very frequently acquire a sud- 
den restoration of both after an arrival at Honduras. 

With the exception of a few months in the year, 
the land is constantly refreshed by regular sea-breezes, 
accompanied by an average of heat that may be taken 
at the temperature of 80°. The seasons have also 
their marked difference. The periodical rains which 
fall, and that are considered neither unseasonable 
nor extraordinary, might almost presage an approach- 
ing deluge, did they happen in some other parts of 



BELIZE; HONDURAS 



235 



the world. But the wet-season, as it is emphatically 
denominated, is not considered here as the season of 
disease. It is fatally otherwise with the greater part 
of the West Indies. The most frequent and violent 
instances of sickness which occur at Honduras, happen 
during the dry season, which is usually comprehended 
within the months of April, May, and June. The 
sun, during this space, is always most powerful, and 
its scorching rays are not mitigated by the same 
uniformity of breeze that prevails during the other 
months of the year. At the beginning of October, 
the Norths, or North winds, commence, and gene- 
rally continue, with little variation, till the return 
of February or March. 

The domestic animals are such as are generally 
known in most parts of Europe. The pasturage 
afforded them being extensive and good: cattle, par- 
ticularly oxen and cows, thrive uncommonly well; 
and the latter supply a plentiful quantity of milk. 
Goats are found to succeed, in a most prolific degree. 
Fish abound in an extraordinary variety: but of the 
fisheries, the most profitable is that of the turtle. 
This forms an exclusive occupation, and the quantity 
taken is considerable. The taking of the species 
called the Hawksbill is particularly desirable, from 
the value which is affixed to its shell; this being, in 
Europe, of the sort that usually obtains the name of 
tortoiseshell. The people engaged in turtling are 
generally inhabitants of the different kays in the 
neighbourhood of Belize: but some have extended 
close to the Spanish settlements, where they remain 
without interruption. Of the baracouta and jew-flsh, 
both exceedingly well-flavoured and firm, the former 
is often caught of sixty pounds weight, and the latter 



236 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



of two hundred. The manati, or sea-cow is some- 
times taken on the coast, and in the neighbouring 
lagoons; its flesh, either fresh or salted, is considered 
a great delicacy. The weight of this sometimes ex- 
ceeds one thousand pounds. Amongst a great variety 
of fruits, which abound here, are included bananas, 
melons of several sorts, pine-apples in great variety, 
oranges of superior flavour, lemons, limes, shaddocks, 
mango, guava, mammee, chashaw-apple, tamarind, 
prickly pear, avocado pear, pomegranate, wild plums 
of many species, sea grape, &c. The grape of Ma- 
deira has been introduced, and is expected to be 
cultivated with success. 

The finely woven straw Panama hats may be pur- 
chased in Belize at a very low price. 



Population, 1841. 

Males. Females. Males. Females. 

Whites ..200 35. Coloured .5,000 3,000. 

Militia. 

1840. Infantry 765. Artillery 221. 

1841. „ 763. „ 221. 

1842. „ 705. „ 214. 

Five private Schools in each year. 
Shipping. 

Inwards. Ships. Tons. Outwards. Ships. Tons. 



1840 .... 101 .... 

1841 112 21,863 

1842 .... 88 .. .. 17,644 



1840 .... 101 .... 

1841 no returns. 

1842 .... 87 .. .. 17,231 



BELIZE, HONDURAS. 



237 



The Course of Exchange between Great Britain and Hon- 
duras is fixed by custom at 40 per cent. The premium upon 
mercantile bills was about 19 J per cent, in 1841. 

One Newspaper is published at Belize : — 

Honduras Observer, Thursdays, by J. M. Daly. Esta- 
blished 1841. 

The Compensation for Slaves paid to Honduras, was 
£101,958 19s. 7id. 



( 238 ) 



LA CUAYRA. 

The steamer of the 2nd of the month from England, 
conveys passengers and mails to Grenada, where one 
of the Royal Mail Company's schooners is in readi- 
ness to proceed to La Guayra and Porto Cabello. 
There is a communication also by the middle of the 
month from Grenada by steamer through the north- 
ern islands to St. Thomas, where the Venezuelan 
schooner meets the mails and conveys them to La 
Guayra. The return mails and passengers are by 
each conveyance brought up to St. Thomas, where 
they join the homeward-bound steamer. 

This schooner is a fine London river-built vessel, 
and has every accommodation for passengers. It 
carries no cargo, and therefore cannot be overloaded 
with goods as other vessels sometimes are. The 
distance from Grenada to La Guayra is 320 miles, 
and the time allowed, according to the Company's 
tables, is 3^- days, or 4 miles per hour; but it will 
frequently be done in a much shorter time. 

La Guayra is the port of Caraccas, the capital of 
the Republic of Venezuela, and is situated on the 
northern coast of the continent of South America. 
It deserves the name of roadstead rather than port, 
as it is open to the north and east, and but slightly 
sheltered to the west by a long promontory of daz- 
zling whiteness, called Capo Blanco. M. Humboldt 
thus describes it: 

"The chain of mountains that separates the port 
from the high valley of Caraccas, descends almost 
directly into the sea; and the houses of the town 



LA GUAYRA. 



239 



are backed by a wall of steep rocks. There remains 
100 to 140 toises breadth of flat ground between the 
wall and the ocean. The town has 6,000 to 8,000 
inhabitants, and contains only two streets, running 
parallel to each other east and west. It is com- 
manded by the battery of Cerro Colorado ; and its 
fortifications along the sea-side are well disposed and 
kept in repair. The aspect of this place has some- 
thing solitary and gloomy; we seemed not to be on 
a continent covered with vast forests, but in a rocky 
island destitute of mould and vegetation. With the 
exception of Cape Blanco and the cocoa-trees of 
Marqueta, no view meets the eye but that of the 
horizon, the sea, and the azure vault of heaven. 
The heat is stifling during the day, and most fre- 
quently during the night. The climate of La Guayra 
is justly considered as one of the most ardent on the 
globe; the sea-breeze is less felt, and the air is 
heated by the radiant caloric which the perpendicular 
rocks emit from the time the sun sets." 

This was written before the great earthquake of 
1812, which destroyed both La Guayra and Ca- 
raccas; and La Guayra still presents the ruin and 
dilapidation consequent thereon. However, there is 
a beauty in the place; for the interior of the shat- 
tered walls are overgrown with weeds and shrubs, 
and the deserted ruins, covered with foliage, form 
some of the most romantic enclosures. 

Landing is sometimes attended with difficulty in 
consequence of the heavy rollers that break on the 
beach. When effected by shore-boats the boatmen 
exact as much as they can, but 1 dollar may be con- 
sidered sufficient remuneration for landing with lug- 
gage, if not exceeding 250 lbs. 



240 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Luggage must be sent to the Custom-house for 
examination, but the search there is conducted with 
delicacy, and no unnecessary delay ensues. No 
articles of wearing apparel are subject to duty unless 
the quantity be excessive, and introduced with the 
object of trade. The Royal Mail Company's ships 
are exempt from visits of the custom-house officers. 

There are two banks at Caraccas, but none at La 
Guayra. There is no national coin. Accounts are 
kept in dollars and cents currency; exchange on 
London ranges from 6 dollars 25 cents, to 6 dollars 
56 cents per pound sterling, for bills at the usual 
sight of 90 days. The Spanish and American dol- 
lars are worth 1 dollar 25 cents currency at par, but 
generally bear a premium of from 2 to 5 per cent. 
The doubloon is worth 20 dollars currency, and, like 
the dollar, bears a premium of from 2 to 5 per cent. 
The gold coins of England and France are not cur- 
rent, but the shilling is received as equal to 31 \ 
cents; and the five-franc piece to 1 dollar 25 cents. 

There are two hotels not far from the landing-place, 
called the Steam-boat, and Delfino's; the former 
English, and the latter Italian. The fare and accom- 
modations are respectable. The cost of living is about 
1 dollar 25 cents currency per day, exclusive of wines 
or liquors, which are generally of inferior quality. 
The town is plentifully supplied with good water, 
conducted by iron pipes from a mountain stream at 
some distance. Both hotels are supplied with this 
water. 

Passengers arriving do not require passports, but 
are expected to report themselves at the office of the 
Gefe Politico, or chief magistrate : of residents, on 
leaving by sea, passports are required, but not of 



LA GUAYRA. 



241 



visitors. Saddle mules, or horses, are alone used in 
travelling. The rate of hire is irregular. To Ca- 
raecas, a distance of about twelve miles, over a 
mountainous road, the hire is 3 dollars currency. 
The journey is made in about 4 or 5 hours. No 
description of wheeled vehicle can be used in con- 
sequence of the steepness and bad state of the 
roads. 

The Government of Venezuela has lately placed a 
schooner to run to St. Thomas and back, so as to 
bring the mails that leave England on the middle of 
each month, in couj unction with the Royal Mail 
schooner tbat brings the mails of the 2nd of the 
month from England, via Grenada. With these two 
exceptions, La Guayra has no regular communication 
with other parts; but mercantile vessels visit the 
port occasionally. 

La Guayra has a small theatre, but the perform- 
ances are seldom, and then of an inferior description. 
There is also a private club and news-room, to which 
members are admitted by ballot; strangers through 
introduction. 

The Government is Republican. The Ambassador 
at the Court of St. James's is Senor Alejo Fortique: 
the Consul for the Republic resident in London is 
J. Milligan, Esq. The British Consul at La Guayra 
is J. H. Lord, Esq., the Charge d' Affaires at Ca- 
raccas is Colonel B. H. Wilson. 

No meteorological tables have been kept at La 
Guayra, but the average during the year, by partial 
observations, is about 82° Fahrenheit. The hottest 
months are from May to September; the ther- 
mometer then never falling below 86° to 92° in the 
shade. Rain does not fall so continuously at La 

R 



242 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Guayra as in other places within the tropics. The 
heaviest rains generally fall in September and Oc- 
tober, when the season breaks up. No season is 
considered particularly unhealthy; epidemics are 
remarkably rare. 

The coast of Venezuela is that of a country of 
which the soil is fertile in all the richest productions 
of the temperate and torrid zones. An American 
writer says, " The low plains produce in abundance 
sugar cane, coffee, cacao, tobacco, fine timber for 
ship building, valuable dye-woods, and medicinal 
plants of various kinds. The cacao of Caraccas is 
twice as valuable as that of the Antillas ; the indigo 
is inferior to none but that of Guatemala ; the to- 
bacco is said to be worth as much again as the best 
Virginia or Maryland : the coffee would rival that of 
Mocha, if the same care were exercised in its pre- 
paration. The plains of Cumana, &c. are covered 
with immense herds of mules, oxen, and horses. 
Maize, wheat, and all the European plants and 
vegetables, are cultivated on the high plains, as 
successfully as in the Mexican States. The climate 
varies according to the elevation. On the coasts, 
and in the low country, it is hot and unhealthy ; but 
the temperature of the city of Leon de Caracas, which 
is about 3,400 feet above the level of the sea, is de- 
lightful throughout the year.'" 

" The soil here," as M. Humboldt remarks, "is 
rich in pasturage, where dairy-houses, built with 
reeds, are separated from each other by clumps of 
trees. The milk remains fresh when kept, not in 
calabashes, but in porous earthen vessels from Mani- 
quarez, which are used here. A prejudice prevalent 
in the countries of the north had long led me to believe 



LA GXJAYRA. 



243 



that cows, under the torrid zone, did not yield rich 
milk; but my abode at Cumana, and especially an ex- 
cursion through the vast plains of Calabozo, covered 
with grasses and herbaceous sensitive plants, con- 
vinced me that the ruminating animals of Europe 
become perfectly habituated to the most scorching cli- 
mates, provided they find water and good nourish- 
ment. The milk is excellent in the provinces of 
Cumana, Barcelona, and Venezuela; and the butter 
is better in the plains of the equinoctial zone than on 
the ridge of the Andes. 

" As the inhabitants of Cumana prefer the coolness 
of the sea-breeze to the appearance of vegetation, 
they are accustomed to no other walk than that of 
the open shore ; yet the banks of the Manzanares are 
very pleasant, and shadowed by mimosas, erythrinas, 
ceibas, and other trees of gigantic growth. A river, 
the temperature of which, in the season of the floods, 
descends as low as 71|- 0 , while the air is at from 86° 
to 91°, is an inestimable benefit in a country where 
the heats are excessive during the whole year, and 
where it is so agreeable to bathe several times in the 
day. The children pass, as it were, a part of their 
lives in the water ; the whole of the inhabitants, 
even the women of the most opulent families, know 
how to swim ; and in a country where man is so 
near the state of nature, one of the first questions 
asked, at first meeting in the morning is, whether 
the water is cooler than in the preceding evening ? 
In a fine moon-light night, chairs are occasionally 
placed in the water, men and women, lightly clothed, 
assemble together, and pass some hours thus, in 
smoking cigars, and talking according to the custom 
of the country. The lavas, or small crocodiles, are 

r 2 



244 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



now become scarce, and approach men without at- 
tacking them. These animals are three or four feet 
long. We never met with them in the Manzanares, 
but with a great number of dolphins, which some- 
times ascend the river in the night, and frighten the 
bathers by spouting water. 

The Grand Ocean is not more calm and pacific on 
the coasts of Peru than the Sea of the Antillas from 
Puerto Cabello, and especially from Cape Codera, to 
the eastern point of Paria. The hurricanes of the 
West Indies are never felt in these regions, the vessels 
of which are without decks." 

The only European physician is Dr. Freidensberg, 
who is much esteemed by the foreign residents. 

Messrs. Macrae, Pearce and Co., are the Royal 
Mail Steam Packet Company's Agents at La Guayra. 



( 245 ) 



PUERTO CABELL©. 

The schooner delays but a few hours at La Guayra, 
and then runs down to Puerto Cabello. The coast 
is so deep and free from danger, that the vessels 
may go close in. Along it are several detached 
wooded islets. Puerto Cabello is a spacious harbour 
formed by several islands and low tongues of man- 
grove land. There is sufficient depth of water for 
the largest vessels close to shore. 

The name of the port is derived from Cahello, a 
horse; as a horse's hair is said to be sufficient to 
secure a ship in this harbour. It has heretofore 
been the careening-place of all the Spanish vessels 
trading to La Guayra, and the place where they 
wintered, after having discharged their cargoes at 
La Guayra, in order to be more secure, to make 
what repairs were necessary, and take in part of their 
return-cargo, with which they returned to La Guayra, 
to finish loading, and complete their manifests. In 
consequence of this plan, some good workmen, as 
carpenters, caulkers, &c. have been established here. 

Passengers are landed by the schooner's boats at 
the distance of a quarter of a mile from the wharf 
in perfectly smooth water. The luggage is taken at 
once to the custom-house, about fifty yards distant, 
and passed without any difficulty. No article of 
personal use is charged with duty. 

The monies are the same as at La Guayra. There 
is an agency of the Colonial Bank in the town. 

Puerto Cabello belongs to the province of Ca- 
rabobo, and the same observances as to passports, 



246 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



&c, obtain here as already described under the head 
of La Guayra. The seasons are the same, though 
the temperature is not so high. 

The only object of curiosity in the neighbourhood 
is the Agua Caliente, or hot springs, distant about 
20 miles, which can be visited on horseback in the 
course of one day at the expense of about 10 dollars, 
including guide. 

The port itself is the best adapted for the residence 
of Europeans on arrival; but the surrounding country 
is by no means considered unhealthy. On ascending 
the Cordillera of mountains that runs parallel with 
the coast, the climate becomes temperate and de- 
licious within a few hours' ride. Four or five miles 
from the port there is a small village called St. 
Stephen, celebrated for the purity of its air and the 
agreeableness of its waters; and the climate through- 
out the year is cooler than at the port, being open to 
the cool airs that rush down from the hills through 
the valley, in which it is situated. 

Puerto Cabello is 130 miles distant from Caraccas, 
or 72 hours' journey: expense about 30 dollars. To 
Valencia 27 miles or 7 hours; to Valencia there are 
three posts weekly. 

Since the former edition of this "Guide," the 
hotel accommodation has been somewhat improved 
in Puerto Cabello. 

The embarkation of live cattle to Jamaica, and 
hung beef to Havana, is a branch of commerce very 
lately commenced, and but now in its infancy. 
Cattle are worth 8 to 10 dollars each; expenses of 
embarking, &c, about 1 dollar, and freight about 
12^- dollars currency each head. The voyage to Ja- 
maica is generally performed in 4 to 5 days. No 



PUERTO CABELLO. 



247 



tonnage duty is charged in Porto Cabello on cattle 
vessels. 

This place is considered very healthy. It is sel- 
dom that fevers or epidemics prevail among the better 
classes; but after heavy rains, intermittent fevers 
and dysentery attack the lower orders, because of the 
want of suitable habitations and the proper means of 
subsistence. Sailors, and those who expose them- 
selves, are subject to attack; but this is generally 
owing to their own intemperance and excess in eating 
fruit. 

The clothing best adapted for this country is 
flannel or silk under vests, linen shirts and drawers, 
white drill pantaloons, and very light boots and 
shoes: linen jackets or coatees, fancy waistcoats, 
and white hats. Of shirts, under vests and pan- 
taloons, drawers and jackets, about two dozen of 
each would be quite sufficient. Boots and shoes 
made in this country are generally preferred; and in 
fact all articles of clothing can be obtained very rea- 
sonably. A couple of suits of cloth clothing are al- 
ways necessary. 

Messrs. Phelps and Evans are the Company's 
Agents at Puerto Cabello. 



( 248 ) 



SANTA MARTHA. 

This harbour may be considered one of the best on 
the coast of New Grenada. The land is generally 
low, but the harbour is easily distinguished by the 
snowy mountains that rise behind. 

The appearance of the town, as seen from a vessel 
standing into the bay, is neat and pretty, the houses 
being whitewashed, and in general, covered with red 
tiles. To the eastward there is a range of hills of no 
great elevation, but steep and of conical form; their 
bases are sandy, but their summits covered with 
brushwood. The wind rushes through the intervals 
between them with great violence into the bay, and 
thus contributes to its insecurity. 

The River Manzanares disembogues a little to the 
south of the city; and, though not large, its water 
is good. 

In the back ground stupendous mountains are 
piled one above another, until they terminate in the 
Nevada of Sta. Martha, which rises to the height 
of 16,419 feet, being partly lost in the clouds, from 
which their peaks emerging, covered with perpetual 
snow, form a striking contrast to the rich and dark 
forests beneath. 

The steamer goes close to the shore, and landing 
and embarking are done with facility by her boats. 
Passports are not required either on landing or em- 
barking. When going from one city of the republic 
to another, they are required, but no charge is made 
for them. 

Passengers' luggage is seldom examined; but if, 



SASTA MARTHA. 



249 



on examination, any articles are found that have not 
been worn, or that have the appearance of being 
brought for sale, if piece goods, they are charged 
from 25 to 33 per cent; and if apparel, the duty is 
nearly equal to the cost of the article. Xo duties 
are charged on exports; but there is a prohibition 
in the export of -wrought silver and gold dust, 
which, if found in passengers' luggage, would be 
confiscated. 

The current money is the coin of the republic, 
which is issued at a low standard, so that passengers 
bringing doubloons, old Spanish or Mexican dollars, 
will generally obtain a premium of 7 per cent. There 
are not any banks. 

Santa Martha does not boast a single hotel, and 
but a few lodgiug houses of a miserable description. 
Persons with letters of introduction generally live 
with those to whom they are addressed. The town 
is well supplied with good water. 

Carriages are not to be had on hire, but horses 
and mules are to be let in abundance. 

The Roman Catholic religion is the dominant one, 
and the public exercise of all others is prohibited. 
There is a very handsome cathedral and several 
churches: also two primary schools and a college for 
adults, in which the modern languages are taught, 
as also Greek and Latin. 

A fort, which is admirably situated for the defence 
of the bay, is seated on the summit of an almost 
perpendicular rock. There is also a small battery, 
now dismantled, on the level of the sea in front of 
the town. About 500 militarv are stationed in Santa 
Martha. 

The city is in the estate of Xew Grenada; the 



250 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



government is republican. The Minister Plenipoten- 
tiary in London is Don M. M. Mosquera. 

The climate is healthy; the thermometer ranges 
from 82° to 95°. There is no winter, but merely 
rainy and breezy seasons. The port is the best resi- 
dence for Europeans. 

Within the distance of a league from Santa Martha 
are some natural salt-pits or mines, from which salt 
is obtained in considerable quantities, and which 
may probably become an important branch of trade. 
Silver has also been found in the vicinity; but the 
richness and extent of the veins have not yet been 
ascertained. 

Passengers going to Santa Fe de Bogota, the capi- 
tal and seat of government, proceed on mules or 
horses to Cienaga, 21 miles, at the charge of 2 
dollars per horse, and by boat across the lake to 
Sitionuevo on the banks of the Magdalena. This 
large river takes its rise on the eastern side of the 
Andes, called the Popayan mountains, drains the 
country between the eastern and central ridges of the 
Cordillera in New Grenada, and is navigable to the 
town of Honda, 130 leagues from the sea and within 
a short distance of Bogota. The quantity of water 
this immense river discharges is prodigious; and 
it has been disputed whether its volume, being 
deeper and more rapid, is not greater than what is 
discharged from the Mississippi. It colours the sea 
sometimes to a distance of 60 miles from its mouth. 
It abounds in fish, but is greatly infested with alli- 
gators, and the banks are covered with immense 
forests, the retreat of savage Indians and of tigers. 
It falls into the sea with great velocity by six bocas or 
mouths, forming a delta. The Rio de Cauca is little 



SANTA MARTHA. 



251 



inferior to the Magdalena in extent and magnitude; 
it joins the Magdalena at Tacaloa, having taken its 
source from the same mountains. 

From Sitionuevo in the months of August and 
September, parties can generally sail up to the con- 
fluence of Rio Cauca and Magdalena; here the cur- 
rent is not rapid. Small boats can be had from 
Sitionuevo to Mompox, at a charge of 25 to 50 
dollars, acccording to size. Some boats are large, 
and carry cargo, but they have no place for passen- 
gers below deck; a passage in these may be had for 
about 16 dollars. There are also trading boats from 
Mompox to Honda, called " champanes," navigated 
by 20 to 30 hands, and convey 200 to 300 packages 
in 25 to 30 days, including stoppages. A canoe 
may also be engaged for a passenger and his baggage 
with 3 men for 100 dollars, making the voyage in 
16 to 20 days to Honda. Mail-boats go up in 15 
days. Stoppages are at Banco one day; Morales, 
two days; San Pablo, two days; Xare, two days. 
At Angostura the river narrows and rocks intercept 
its flow, the currents are therefore very strong, and 
if there have been floods, passengers must stop till 
they abate. At other times it takes only 2 or 3 
hours, when free from the flood, to pass Angostura. 
From Xare to Honda is 6 days. Just below Honda 
at a place called Vuelta, there are large store-houses 
where the goods the champanes bring are deposited, 
and mules are obtainable to proceed to Honda, 9 
miles distant, at the charge of half a dollar. From 
Honda to Bogota, 66 miles, is by mules or horses 
at a charge of about 5 dollars. The whole expense 
from Santa Martha to Bogota for one passenger and 
luggage is from 130 to 150 dollars. 



252 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The whole of the voyage is done by oars, and the 
Indians work with great patience and perseverance. 
The expenses just mentioned include all charges, for 
these poor people feed themselves. Each passenger 
should provide a sufficiency of light clothing, a large 
mackintosh and cloth cloak, a light moveable bed- 
stead, (as hammocks cannot be slung) with a thin 
leather-covered mattress, and the best quality Mus- 
quito net. The houses are miserable habitations, and 
it were best to sleep in the boat; the dews are very 
heavy. The traveller should also take his own can- 
teen with preserved provisions, — fowls and eggs may 
be had at the towns, — his own tea and coffee or 
chocolate, sugar, salt, &c. The cooking must be 
done on shore. They travel only by day. 

From Bogota to Santa Martha the journey is 
effected in 8 days, at the expense of about 50 dol- 
lars, as it is with the stream. The specie is thus 
brought down for shipment. Gold coin is the prin- 
cipal part of the exports, but emeralds and other 
precious stones are also forwarded. Gold dust is 
prohibited; and if taken, when attempted to be 
smuggled, is confiscated. But it is well known that 
very large quantities of gold dust are exported. The 
duty in coining is heavy, and the distance to the 
mint from where it is gathered, is a still greater ob- 
stacle. The Indians having the dust in charge for 
export have never been known to betray their trust. 
Only once within the last 20 years, has an instance 
occurred of gold dust, when attempted to be smug- 
gled, being seized in consequence of information; and 
this latter was by a degraded white man, who over- 
heard the Indian speaking of the treasure to his 
wife. It is gratifying to find that these untutored 



SANTA MARTHA. 



253 



children of nature are worthy of trust and confi- 
dence. 

It is the intention of the Government of Xew 
Grenada shortly to station a small steamer to ply 
between Santa Martha and Carthagena, and up the 
River Magdalena to Mompox and Honda. 

We have been favoured by Don R. de Ayala, 
Secretary to the Legation of Xew Grenada, in London, 
with the following statistics of Santa Martha and 
Carthagena. 

From 1st September, 1842, to Slst August, 1843. 

Imports— 172 ships. 21,238tons. Value of Cargoes ^2,573,682 
Exports „ ^375,391 

Population of the province of Santa Martha 45,677 

„ Town „ 4,411 

There are in Santa Martha 68 Schools, with 1,103 Scholars 
a College, and Seminary. 



( 254 ) 



CARTHAGENA 

Is the capital of the province of the same name. It 
is situated on a sandy tongue of humid land on the 
shore of a large and very commodious bay, more 
than two leagues in length. It contains a handsome 
cathedral, besides several churches, convents, and 
monasteries. The island, which forms a narrow strait 
on the south-west, opens a communication with that 
part of the land called Tierra Bomba. To the east- 
ward the city is joined by a wooden bridge to a large 
suburb called Xeximani, which is connected with 
the continent by another bridge. The city and 
suburbs are well laid out, the streets being straight, 
broad, and uniform. The houses are for the most 
part built of stone. They consist chiefly of one story 
above the ground floor. All of them have balconies 
and lattices of wood, which in this climate is more 
durable than iron. Carthagena, like the whole pro- 
vince, suffers from periodical rains. In former times 
this city was the scene of frequent contests, and in 
the late war of independence it was taken and retaken 
by both parties. The population amounts to about 
20,000, of whom a great many are of Indian descent. 

The city of Carthagena is celebrated for its ex- 
tensive fairs, held at certain periods of the year, for 
the sale of various descriptions of foreign merchandize, 
and other goods no less valuable to the inhabitants 
of the surrounding districts. These fairs are attended 
by immense bodies of Indians, who make their pur- 
chases in gold, obtained from the bottom of the 
River Choco. 



CARTHAGEXA. 



255 



Since the war of independence, civilization has 
made considerable progress in Carthagena, and Eu- 
ropean fashions, with music and dancing, prevail. 
The harp and song are heard as in most of the 
civilized cities of Europe. 

The climate is very hot. From May to November 
is the rainy season. At this season there is an almost 
continual succession of thunder, rain, and tempests, 
so that the streets have the appearance of rivers. 
From December to April is the summer, when the 
heat is excessive. The latter part of the dry season is 
deemed the most unhealthy. Strangers are recom- 
mended not to sleep on shore. With this precaution, 
it has been remarked that a tea-spoonful of red bark, 
taken in a glass of port wine or other cordial at rising 
in the morning, has been considered an excellent 
preventative against fever. Yet the inhabitants enjoy 
good health and live even to 80 or 90 years of age. 

Passengers are landed by the steamer's boats. 
There are but few houses of entertainment; the 
charges are moderate. The Spanish and Mexican 
dollar and doubloon are current here as at Santa 
Martha. 



From 1st September, 1342, to 31st August, 1843. 

Imports — 90 ships. 10.244 tons. Value of Cargoes =$765,376 
Exports #1,212,698 

Population of the province of Carthagena. . . . 142,000 
,, Town ,, .... 10,145 

There are 116 Schools in Carthagena, with 2,000 Scholars, 
a College, University, Seminary, and a School for Marines. 



( 256 ) 



CHACRES. 

The town of Chagres is a poor and miserable place, 
being formed of only a few tbatched huts. It is 
very unhealthy, being situate in a little sandy bay, 
on the north side of the river, open only to the 
west wind, and bounded by woods to the south, a 
dark looking fortification to the north, and a swamp 
to the east, which is fed by springs that have no 
outlet. The inhabitants number about 1,000, and 
are chiefly black or coloured, with the exception of 
a few custom-house officers, and the commandant of 
the castle. There is a house, called an hotel, kept 
by Peter Eskildsen, who professes to use e his utmost 
endeavours to facilitate to travellers all the conveni- 
ences that the country will permit of.' 

The river Chagres imparts a yellow colour to the 
sea, a distance of 8 miles from land. After issuing 
from the harbour and uniting with the sea-current, 
the stream seldom runs at a less rate, along the land 
to the northward and eastward, than one mile and 
a half in the hour. The entrance of the river has a 
a bar with not more than 13 feet over it. Large 
vessels therefore lie at anchor without, in the road. 

Travellers, on arriving at Chagres, can procure 
canoes, of which there are an abundance, and pro- 
ceed up the river without delay; for single passengers 
small canoes, or what are there termed cayucas, are 
preferable, on account of dispatch; beside the pas- 
senger, they will carry two trunks and a bed, which 
forms a mule load. If the luggage is excessive, a 
second cayuca should be taken. In the case of 



CHAGRES. 



257 



families or ladies, large canoes are necessary; awn- 
ings of plantain leaves are provided to protect the 
passengers from the sun and rain. Fowls, eggs, 
and fruit may be obtained from the cottages on the 
banks of the river. During the dry season, which 
commences in December, and terminates in June or 
July, the cayucas will reach Gorgona or Cruces in 
about eighteen hours, and large canoes in two days; 
but during the rains, and when the torrents com- 
mence, which are most violent in August, September, 
and October, double the time is necessary. 

The passage of the isthmus during the dry season 
is neither inconvenient nor unpleasant; the tempera- 
ture, though warm, is perfectly healthy, and there is 
always personal security. Specie is insured from 
Lima via Panama to London, including risk of the 
transit of tbe isthmus, in the London offices, at 30s. 
per cent. 

The river scenery is of the most beautiful descrip- 
tion, the trees overhanging from both sides. There 
are several villages, and at intervals, collections of 
cane huts, or a single hut, with an acre or two of 
cleared ground, where the grass grows round it with 
gardens of bananas, plantains, and maize. The boat 
will travel at the rate of six miles an hour with the 
stream, but against it the rate varies according to 
the strength of tbe stream, during either the rainy 
or dry season. 

The towns of Gorgona and Cruces are finely situated 
in elevated positions on the banks of the Chagre, 
and are remarkably healthy; the inhabitants are kind 
and hospitable, and ready to give passengers all the 
accommodation they possess at a trifling charge. 

s 



258 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



There are two roads or mule paths to Panama, the 
one from Gorgona, and the other from Cruces; the 
former is somewhat longer, but in the dry season it 
is mostly a good galloping ground, and may be rode 
over easily in six or seven hours; during the rains it 
is muddy. The other road is broken, stony, and pre- 
cipitous; it was formerly paved, but being neglected, 
the stones are very annoying; the mules, however, 
are sure-footed and there is no danger; the Muleteers 
having their relations and friends at Cruces generally 
endeavour to persuade passengers to take this route 
in preference to that of Gorgona. 

Of the road from Cruces to Panama, Mr. Scarlett 
observes, " It was paved years ago by the Spaniards, 
since which it has been entirely abandoned to its fate, 
whilst the rains combined with a constant use of it, 
without repair, have worked numerous holes between 
the stones, so deep that for several miles at each step 
our horses were plunging up to their knees. Habit 
has enabled these animals to arrive in safety at the 
end of the journey, but not before the strength of 
the traveller is exhausted by fatigue. They manage 
in general neither to injure themselves, nor their 
burdens; but they can only accomplish the task by 
great care and patience. In some places the path is 
so narrow, as well as deep, that there is scarcely room 
for the rider to sit on his horse astride; his legs are 
exposed to be crushed by the rocks on either side; 
and in others we ascended or descended flights of 
rough steps, formed by an uneven pavement of natu- 
ral rocks, which it would puzzle any body, unaccus- 
tomed to the business, to find his way up and down 
even on foot, without a tumble. And all this through 



CHAGRES. 



259 



a thick mass of wood which, scarcely admitting light 
enough to make the track visible, increases the 
danger." 

The passenger, arriving either at Graces or Gor- 
gona, must give his first attention to procuring mules, 
but should he not find any, he must dispatch a mes- 
senger to Panama, and the following clay they will be 
provided. It is always better to send the luggage 
forward five or six hours in advance, and should it 
arrive before the passenger it will be deposited in 
the Custom-house until the owner appears. 

In Panama good lodgings can always be procured: 
the inhabitants are kind and friendly; the city is 
healthy, built upon a promontory, and nearly sur- 
rounded by the sea. 

f 'I have seen nothing," writes Mr. Scarlett, " ex- 
cept Rio Harbour, equal in beauty to the situation 
of this Port. The city, which is walled, and has 
ramparts all round it, stands upon a tongue of land, 
washed on both sides by the Pacific, and from its 
numerous churches, stone houses with tiled roofs, 
and old architectural convents, with trees growing 
in the midst of some that are in ruins, it presents 
towards the sea, a very picturesque, and agreeable 
view. It is situated at the base of a range of soft 
green, undulating hills, which are covered with tro- 
pical woods, and form the foreground to a higher 
class of mountains, stretching like a barrier between 
the two oceans. The highest mountains, however, 
on the isthmus are never so lofty, as to be destitute 
of foliage, even to their summits. 

"The immediate neighbourhood of Panama is laid 
out in gardens, pasturage, and orchards, and there 
are a few villas which give it a polished air, and 



260 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



contrast prettily with the solemn grandeur of the 
forests beyond. These stretch entirely across the 
isthmus, in an unbroken mass, except at intervals, 
where the axe of the negro, has here and there cleared 
a space sufficient for the rude hut of some solitary 
family, whose habitation interrupts the uniformity 
of the sylvan scene." 

The expence of travelling from ocean to ocean, 
with ordinary luggage, is as follows : — 

Hire of Cayuca from Chagres to Cruces or Gorgona =$10 0 
One Luggage Mule from do. to Panama . .30 
One Saddle Mule do. ..50 

Or about £4 10 0 £18 0 



The voyage from Panama to Chagres usually 
occupies thirty hours, and the expense is about the 
same as that from Chagres to Panama. 

There are two small vessels constantly plying 
between Panama and Guayaquil or Payta, in which 
passengers can embark for Peru or Chile. 



( 261 ) 



SAN JUAN DE NICARAGUA, 

The province of Nicaragua extends from the Carib- 
bean Sea to the Pacific Ocean. It is a part of the 
Republic of "Guatemala, in central America. The N. 
E. coast was discovered by Columbus in 1502. Most 
part was conquered by the Spaniards about 1524. 

Nicaragua takes its name from a powerful cacique, 
who was one of the first to enter into friendly relations 
with the Spaniards, and submit to baptism. 

Central America became independent in 1821, and 
was subsequently incorporated with Mexico; but on 
the fall of Iturbide, it disconnected itself from the 
Mexican republics, and was formed into a separate 
confederation in 1823. Since the declaration of inde- 
pendence, the country has been disturbed by frequent 
civil wars, but these have at present happily subsided. 
This magnificent country abounds with corn, fruits, 
and fine timber. The principal products are wax, 
tallow, tar, sugar, cochineal, and cacao. The noble 
lake in the interior adds greatly to the beauty of the 
country. This lake, or rather inland sea, is 120 miles 
in length, and 45 in breadth in its widest part, with- 
out narrowing at either end, and extends to within 
20 miles of the Pacific. It is interspersed with 
islands some of which are of great height. On this 
inland sea the Spaniards formerly kept a brig of war 
of 14 guns, and several schooners or gun boats. An 
English merchant has also had a schooner of 40 tons 
trading upon the lake; and as a proof of the quantity 
of water in the River San Juan during the freshes, 
this schooner, which was built at Jamaica, was con- 



262 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



veyed to the lake through the river by merely re- 
moving her keel, and replacing it when she arrived 
on the lake. The current of this river is so strong 
that the flat-bottomed boats, that navigate it, are five 
to six days in ascending and about 36 hours coming 
down. These boats are obliged to unload at three 
places in the river; and it is said that the fall from 
the lake to the sea is 130 feet. The river, which di- 
vides itself into three mouths as it falls into the At- 
lantic, is plentifully stocked with fish, particularly 
with the manatti or river cow, which is prepared in 
the same manner as corned beef, and is superior 
when served up in that way; when smoked it is pre- 
ferred to ham. 

The following is from the pen of an American tra- 
veller in 1835: " The states of Central America are 
Costarica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Salvador, and Gua- 
temala. The seat of the general government is at 
St. Salvador, situate in the federal district, a circle 
of 20 miles in diameter, with a farther extension of 
10 miles to the south, which includes the road of 
Libertad on the Pacific Ocean. 

The principal ports of the federation, in the Bay 
of Honduras, are Isabel, Omoa, and Truxillo ; in 
the Caribbean Sea, San Juan de Nicaragua, Matina, 
and Boco del Toro, or Bocatoro ; and on the Pacific, 
Calderas, el Realejo, la Union, Libertad, Acajutla and 
Istapa. A central but not very elevated ridge, con- 
necting the Andes with the spinal range of the 
northern continent, extends through Central America, 
and from thence various navigable rivers have their 
sources, which run into the Bays of Campeachy and 
Honduras, the Caribbean Sea and the Pacific Ocean. 
The volcanoes, which so remarkably stud the shore 



SAN JUAN DE NICARAGUA. 



263 



of the latter, are all situated on the southern slope of 
the ridge, which they greatly out-top. The irruption 
of that of Cosiguina, in January 1835, sent the sound 
of its report, accompanied by ashes, to the island of 
Jamaica, the adjacent parts of New Granada, and as 
far as Oajaca in Mexico. 

The staple exports of Central America are gold and 
silver, indigo, cochineal, sarsaparilla, hides, balsam, 
mahogany, Brasil, log, and other woods. No other 
section of this hemisphere has such comparative 
abundance of valuable exports, which, by the increas- 
ing industry of the inhabitants, now (without includ- 
ing the precious metals) nearly equal the imports. 

The population of the federation is little short of 
two millions, and is almost without any of the negro 
race. The Central Americans are happily distin- 
guished hf an entire absence of that religious fana- 
ticism which so unfortunately prevails in the neigh- 
bouring republics. Religious liberty is expressly 
provided for by the constitution, and is inherent in 
the feelings of all. There are no bishops in Central 
America. The monkish orders have been wholely 
extinguished, and the few nunneries that remain can- 
not compel their members to stay in them against 
their will. 

The independence of Central ximerica was finally 
attained on the 1st of July, 1823, and a constitution 
was adopted very similar to that of the Northern 
United States. The president, General Franciso 
Morasan, was elected to a second term of four 
years: his fortune, moderation, and sacred respect for 
the institutions of the country, promise a prosperous 
period. In short, it may be confidently predicted 
that the internal troubles of Central America have 

I 



264 



THE "WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



for ever terminated; these have been very ruinous to 
the advance of Nicaragua and Salvador ; but the 
other three states are rapidly progressing in the 
career of good government, industry, and wealth: 
that of Guatemala, from the tranquillity it has for 
many years enjoyed, and the greater intelligence of 
its leading men, is most forward in the race of im- 
provement: in this state the Spanish laws have been 
entirely abolished. Education is fostered by every 
means, the greatest economy and good faith are 
observable in all the transactions of the government. 
The health and fertility of the country, and the tem- 
perate climate enjoyed at a short distance from the 
coast, offer additional inducements to these enter- 
prises. 

The nation has no foreign debt, and the custom- 
house duties are very moderate. 



( 265 ) 



PROJECTS 

FOR 

A CANAL COMMUNICATION 

BETWEEN 

THE ATLANTIC AND PACIFIC OCEANS. 



This subject, one of old date, has been lately revived 
with greatly encreased interest. Several projects have 
been started, but we propose to review only those of 
which any reliable data exist. These are — 

THE ISTHMUS FROM CHAGRES TO PANAMA, 
THE RIVER AND LAKE OF NICARAGUA, 

AND THE 

ISTHMUS OF TEHU ANTE PEC. 



ISTHMUS OF PANAMA. 

Considerable discussion has lately been held in 
our own and in the French press on this interesting 
question. The French ministers, also, have spoken 
in the Chambers upon it. M. Guizot states that in 
his own mind he has no doubt some day or other it 
will be effected; and with some warmth exclaims, 
"then the value of the French possessions in the 
Pacific would be greatly increased, and France would 
have many reasons to congratulate herself in the pos- 



266 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



session of them." And Admiral Roussin, during 
the same discussion, — in April, 1843, — stated that 
the chief advantages of such a communication would 
be, that the Society and Marquesas Islands, by being 
brought nearer to France, would take a prominent 
place amougst important stations of the world. x\nd 
the Journal des Bebats looks forward to the time 
when a three-decker can pass through the canal and 
proceed direct, without doubling Cape Horn, to the 
French possessions in Oceana. 

The French minister did not state that France was 
herself about to effect this much-desired object. Our 
American neighbours, however, have not only an- 
nounced that the contract was made to effect this 
great work between Chagres and Panama, but have 
stated the very terms of the agreement between the 
Government of New Granada and the Messrs. Baring, 
of London, and the time and mode in which it was to 
be completed. In fact the whole matter, with them, 
was settled, but it wanted one chief thing, which was 
the knowledge of Messrs. Barings themselves, for 
we have authority for saying that there is no truth 
in the assertion. But in the meantime start up 
claimants, in the persons of Messrs. Salomon, of the 
French island of Guadaloupe, to the right of way to 
cut this canal, and preferring their title on the faith 
of some treaties which they had made with the 
Government of New Granada, and they have con- 
firmed their own assertion by publishing extracts 
from letters from M. Mosquera, the minister for that 
Republic in London. 

It has been asserted that this project of a canal 
was a favourite one of the younger Pitt, and that he 
used to speak in glowing terms of the supposed 



ISTHMUS OF PANAMA. 



267 



facilities of this great undertaking. The Edinburgh 
Review, of 1610, in noticing Humboldt's works, 
just published, gave perhaps the earliest information 
on the subject, derived, it is supposed, from General 
Miranda, then a refugee in England, and one of the 
early sufferers in the South American revolution. 

The first and only survey of the Isthmus of Panama, 
that we have, was made by Mr. J. A. Lloyd, an Eng- 
lishman, in company with Colonel Falmark, a Swedish 
officer, both appointed by General Bolivar, to survey 
the Isthmus of Panama. An account of this survey 
with a chart, from which the accompanying map is 
reduced, appeared in the philosophical transactions 
of 1830; the original object of the commission was, 
as Mr. Lloyd states, " to ascertain in the most con- 
venient manner, the difference of level between the 
two seas.' 5 

The direct distance across the Isthmus from sea 
to sea is 29 geographical or 34 statute miles. 

The bar and river of Chagre, as we before stated 
under that head, are too shallow to answer for an 
outlet. Mr. Lloyd's project was to make a harbour, 
by forming a breakwater in Limon Bay, and cutting 
a canal across to the junction of the Gatun with the 
Chagre. To the confluence of the Trinidad and 
Chagre the water is deep, and the banks precipitous, 
and from this junction a canal was to run parallel 
with the lines marked as proposed railroads, either 
direct to Chorrera or with an inclination to follow the 
decline of the land, direct to Panama. The rise and 
fall of tides on the coast of Panama, are nearly 20 
feet at full and change, and the greatest variation 
27 feet. "Now this one fact," concludes Mr. Lloyd, 
"gives such incalculable power to an engineer that 



268 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



by its means almost every difficulty in water commu- 
nication can be overcome." Mr. Lloyd also expresses 
himself convinced that "in the present stage of 
scientific knowledge and engineering I see no serious 
obstacles, except the climate and expense, which 
should prevent a canal being cut to admit the largest 
ship in Her Majesty's Navy, passing from sea to sea." 
As to the want of a harbour for ships in Panama, 
Mr. Lloyd remarks, "It is true that the bay of 
Panama is an open roadstead, but it is equally true 
that within a short distance from the shore there is 
sufficient water at any time of the tide for the largest 
ship, and the most rare occurrence of a heavy gale 
or rolling sea, renders the roadstead as safe as a land- 
locked harbour in other parts of the world, and even 
in case of bad weather, there is, at the distance of 
seven miles, excellent anchorage and most secure 
shelter at the island of Taboga, where ships can 
both provision and water. There is no denying that 
at low water, the coast is high and dry for a con- 
siderable distance seaward. But there are in various 
parts of the bay and close to the shore, well-known 
holes in the lafa or rock, or, as they are called in 
Panama, Huecos, in which vessels of considerable 
burthen anchor securely, and independent of the 
surrounding flat." 

It has been asserted by the Journal des Dehats 
that this survey was incomplete; and that M. Morel, 
the engineer for Messrs. Salomon, had discovered a 
line of country of much less elevation than that 
marked by Messrs. Lloyd and Falmark. The first 
of these assertions may be true, " because," remarks 
Mr. Lloyd, " this survey was undertaken at a time 
when the whole of that part of the world was in a 



ISTHMUS OF PANAMA. 



269 



state of anarchy from political dissentions, the com- 
mission had to encounter many personal privations, 
aud vexations, and all but interminable difficulties in 
the execution of their task; and had, at least on the 
part of Mr. Lloyd, to defray a very considerable 
part of the expense themselves." 

As to the latter assertion of the Journal des 
Bebats, Mr. Lloyd explains that, "To obtain the 
difference of level of the two seas, we took, as far 
as we could render it available, a beaten track, 
which accounts for our high summit level, but which 
was far from the lowest point between the two seas; 
and although I can venture to predict that M. 
Morel's statement that 12 meters in the highest 
point in one direction will never be verified, still 
I am aware and certain that the most favourable 
ground on the eastern banks of the Trinidad will 
be found very much lower than the height we passed 
over." 

And to the observation made in another pub- 
lication, that Mr. Lloyd "had made up his mind 
that a railroad is best adapted to the locality," he 
remarks, "the fact of my laying down two railroads 
was mainly to point out the most favourable direction 
for such a work, and my proposal for a railroad 
which should have been constructed of guallacan or 
lignum-vitae from the neighbouring forests, was in 
the first instance to afford transport, and bring into 
use the wonderful resources of the country in its 
splendid forests, its lime quarrying and free stone." 
But this railroad was only to be an assistant to the 
canal that was eventually to connect the two oceans. 

Mr. William Wheelwright, founder, and for some 
time manager of the Pacific Steam Company, met 



270 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Mr. Lloyd on the Isthmus, and has frequently 
crossed it since. He fully concurs with Mr. Lloyd 
in the practicability of running either a canal or rail- 
road, and states in his observations communicated to 
to the Royal Geographical Society in February last, 
that a level line exists on the Isthmus, and that 
there is no height of consequence to be overcome in 
effecting a communication between the two oceans. 

" If we are not deceived," says Mr. Wheelwright, 
cc the level is so complete that it would only be ne- 
cessary to have locks at either end of the canal, 
while its total length would not exceed thirty miles. 
The Chagres could be made its feeder, but the ele- 
vation of the Pacific feet) above the Atlantic, 
would I think render the canal entirely independent 
of any tributary streams. Both of the termini would 
require artificial harbours, or must be protected by 
breakwaters. No substantial difficulty exists on this 
point; when the work is undertaken, ways and 
means will soon be found for overcoming all minor 
obstacles. 

" All, however, who are acquainted with the cir- 
cumstances of the country will, I think, admit, that 
before so vast an undertaking as the opening of a 
great ship-canal can be commenced it is absolutely 
necessary that a road be made as near the level line 
as possible, both with a view to ulterior labours, 
which such a road would greatly facilitate, and for 
the immediate establishment of an intercourse between 
the two oceans." 

This plain and obvious work, however, seems 
entirely neglected during the distractions of the 
public mind in aiming at grand and mighty — almost 
impossible — objects, while the plain principle of 



ISTHMUS OF PANAMA. 



271 



making the best of actual circumstances is forgotten, 
"The description of the road best adapted/' con- 
tinues Mr. Wheelwright, " to meet the object must 
be determined by a minute examination of the local 
and tropical difficulties and peculiarities. I have 
long thought that a tram road, with an iron rail 
would be the most desirable, as it could be adapted 
to locomotive power when necessary. As this road 
will pass through a swampy tract of country, and be 
exposed to the effects of severe rains and torrents, 
the method proposed would probably be the most 
economical and efficient, and less exposed to injury; 
the piles could be carried to the height required, 
which would generally supersede the necessity of 
bridges and parapets, while the expense would be 
very limited. All the material necessary for con- 
structing such a road is on the spot, excepting the 
iron; labour is abundant and cheap; the usual wages 
not exceeding four reals, or two shillings per day; 
it is true that the natives certainly cannot perform 
the labour of Europeans in Europe, but I am confident 
in that climate they would do more ; in fact Europeans 
could not withstand its enervating effects; while the 
natives, like the cutters of mahogany and dye-woods, 
are acclimated, patient of fatigue, simple in their 
habits, and temperate; they are content with the 
food of the country, which consists of charque, or 
dried beef, rice, and Indian corn, and are strong 
athletic men, accustomed many of them to carry 
burdens of 150 pounds weight across the isthmus, 
upon their backs, performing the whole journey of 
twenty-one miles in a day. 

A great object would be gained by the formation 
of such a road; the whole detention on the isthmus. 



272 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



from ocean to ocean, would not exceed a few hours; 
Chagres (the town), would be altogether avoided, 
and passengers incur no risk from climate. Goods 
could be transported with celerity and ease, at a 
trifling expense." 



THE RIVER SAN JUAN AND LAKE OF 
NICARAGUA. 

This is perhaps the first in date of the several pro- 
jects, and as yet we are without sufficient data on 
which to found a correct estimate. 

It is stated, indeed, that there exists a Spanish 
MS. in the archives at Guatemala, by Don M. Ga- 
listeo, who surveyed the country from the Lake 
Nicaragua to the Pacific in the year 1781. 

There are two projects on this line. One is, to 
connect the Port of Realejo, on the Pacific, with the 
Lake of Leon, which latter is said to join that of 
Nicaragua by a river; and the other project is, to 
join the Nicaragua Lake by a direct cut with the 
Gulf of Papagayo on the Pacific. 

The Lake of Leon is 35 miles long and 15 miles 
broad, and is said to be fit for ships of large size; 
and as it is of higher elevation above the Pacific 
than that of Nicaragua, it would serve as an upper 
basin for the supply of water required to feed a 
canal of large dimensions carried from the head of 
the lake into the Bay of Realejo. It is besides 
affirmed that a navigable river, called Tosta, flows 
only 12 miles from the Lake of Leon into the Pacific. 

The second project and more direct course, is from 



SAN JUAN AND LAKE OF NICARAGUA. 2/3 

Nicaragua to the Gulf of Papagayo. It is stated that 
the distance from the Gulf of Papagayo is only lof 
miles; and though the intervening country be laid 
down in many maps as mountainous, the greatest 
actual height of any part of it above the level of the 
lake is only 19 feet, as was proved by a series of 34/ 
levels about 100 yards apart, taken in 1781. The 
difference of the level of the two oceans was ascer- 
tained by Humboldt, not to exceed 20, or at most 
22 feet. 

An interesting paper on this subject by Jeremy 
Bentham, entitled Junctiana Proposal, dated June, 
1822, appears for the first time in his collected 
works, edited by Dr. J. Bowring, M.P. 

On the faith of an American writer, Mr. "William 
Davis Robinson, who published Memoirs of the 
Mexican Revolution, Mr. Bentham throws aside all 
the other various projects of canal communication, 
and adopts this as the one alone capable of execution. 

Mr. Bentham, quoting Mr. Robinson, states the 
sum of the advantages as follows: — 

" Between both lakes and the Pacific the ground 
is a ' dead level.' In the Pacific Ocean depth of 
water not stated in figures, but said to be free from 
rocks and shoals; and on the Papagayo coast, the 
shore so bold that a frigate may anchor within a few 
yards of the beach. " 

But he also states that <c From the Atlantic into 
the Lake Nicaragua up the River San Juan large 
brigs and schooners sail." We have previously (p. 
262) stated that a schooner of 40 tons, built in 
Jamaica, was conveyed up the river to Nicaragua 
Lake, at the time of the freshes, by removing her 
keel. This is an extraordinary instance, however, 



274 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



and not sufficient to warrant the general assertion 
that " large brigs and schooners sail" up that river, 
The difficulties of this line are, indeed, in the 
River San Juan itself. There are several places 
where the flat-bottomed boats of the country are 
compelled to unload in order to convey the merchan- 
dize over the shallows and rocks in the river. Should 
these be overcome or evaded, this line presents many 
probabilities in its favor. There is no doubt suffi- 
ciency of water for vessels of any burthen at the 
Pacific side, and the Nicaragua Lake, as before 
stated, is of considerable depth and of great dimen- 
sions. The distance from the mouth of the San 
Juan River to the Pacific is about 220 geographical 
miles. 



THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 

Is the third and lately revived project. We have 
been favoured, by Don Jose de Garay, with a pam- 
phlet, (not published,) entitled, "Survey of the Isth- 
mus of Tehuantepec, executed in the years 1842, 
1843, with the intent of establishing a communication 
between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and under 
the superintendence of a scientific commission ap- 
pointed by the projector, Don Jose de Garay/' 

This survey enters into the geological formation of 
the Isthmus, and gives also the astronomical observa- 
tions, trigonometrical measurements, and barometrical 
altitudes of the several heights across the country, and 
other data; the exactness in which particulars in other 
surveys, has rendered Spanish surveys so generally and 
deservedly celebrated. The work is very ably written, 



ISTHMUS OF TEHU ANTE PEC. 



275 



and describes fully that part of Mexico through 
which runs the River Coatzacoalcos. This river 
enters the Gulf of Mexico, 140 miles S. E. of the 
city of Vera Cruz, in 17 c 8' 30" N. lat., and 94° 17' 
W. long, of Greenwich. There is a bar at the mouth, 
the shallowest part of which, however, is not less 
than 21 English feet; "and a North American pilot, 
who resides in the establishment of Mr. Baldwin, 
at Mina-titlan, assured us that he had many times 
crossed the bar, and that he had never found less 
water upon it than 21 English feet, equivalent to 6.4 
metres. This account nearly agrees with our own 
observation, and confirms the old opinion that the 
bar does not shift, a circumstance easily explained, 
since the current of the river is slow, and the tides 
are almost imperceptible at its mouth." 

The Coatzacoalcos is declared to be navigable for 
large ships to about 40 miles from its mouth, having 
a depth of 28 to 40 feet of water, after passing the 
bar. It is joined by several tributaries as it flows 
towards the sea, and has one shallow at the con- 
fluence at La Horqueta and two rapids considerably 
higher up; but at Horqueta, the branch called 
Brazo Mistan forms an island by which boats may 
evade this shallow, and proceed up to the junction 
of the River Malatengo, which is 163 kilometres, 
equal to 100 English miles, further than Horqueta. 
In this description the commission is confirmed by 
the reports of Senores Orbigozo and Ortiz who were 
appointed a commission to survey this isthmus jointly, 
by the state of Vera Cruz and the federal governments, 
in 1824. "The favourable and useful peculiarities 
of the Coatzacoalcos," writes Senor Moro, the author 
of the work, and the Director and Chief of the Com- 

t 2 



276 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



mission, " soon attracted the notice of its early dis- 
coverers. Cortes, speaking of the country of which 
the isthmus forms a part, says: — 

" I had heard that in a very great river which runs 
through the said province and falls into the sea, there 
was an excellent harbour for vessels; because Ordaz, 
and those who accompanied him had examined it, and 
as the country appeared particularly fitted for coloni- 
zation, and there being on this coast such scarcity of 
harbours, I was desirous of finding one, and establish- 
ing, a settlement there " 

Subsequently, by order of Cortes himself, Ordaz 
founded the town of Espiritu Santo, four leagues 
from the mouth of the river, of which only some 
slight traces now remain. 

"No one ever visited the Coatzacoalcos," writes 
Senor Moro, "whether acquainted with these mat- 
ters or not, without being impressed with the facility 
with which the whole of it might be made navigable. 

The stability of its bed is owing both to the slow- 
ness of the current, which prevents its excavating the 
bottom and banks, and to the clearness of the waters, 
which carry no materials down to make new deposits. 
The gentleness of the current may be inferred from 
the fact that its course, with all its windings from 
the confluence of the Malatengo to the sea, measures 
258,000 metres, with a fall of only 40, namely, 
0,000155 of descent for each metre of course. 

It has been observed that the bar of the Coatza- 
coalcos is permanent, and in the plan of its course, 
raised in 1825 by General Orbegozo, we find, after 
a lapse of eighteen years, that the same windings 
exist throughout. The islets and streams are also 
identical both in number and importance, which seem 



ISTHMUS OF TEHU ANTE PEC. 2/7 

to promise that whatever works may be necessary to 
give greater depth to the river will have a permanent 
result if they are well conceived and properly executed. 

The usual eugines might be used, as well as the 
power of the river itself, by narrowing temporarily 
its bed more than necessary. This object might be 
effected by means of dikes constructed with solid 
piles, taking advantage for the purpose of the useful 
materials which nature herself offers profusely in the 
large trees and excellent clay that cover the banks 
of the river. 

In some parts of the upper course of the river it 
may perhaps be necessary to straighten its course, 
checking the increased current by means of a lock, 
and in others to construct solid embankments so as 
to limit the width of its bed; but any attempt to 
determine at present the number and magnitude of 
these works would only evince either want of good 
faith or presumptuous ignorance. 

To change the established course of a mighty river 
is one of the most delicate operations in hydraulics, 
and requires not only much skill and tact, but a 
careful study of local circumstances, which cannot be 
the result of a single inspection, but rather a series 
of assiduous preliminary labours. 

I cannot, however, look upon the difficulties as 
very great, for I am thoroughly convinced that they 
would be neither arduous nor expensive to overcome. 
The two most difficult points are the rapids of the 
old and the new Mai Paso, where the river runs upon 
a rocky bed; but these are of limited extent, and 
the many efficient means employed in similar cases 
are too well known to allow of much importance 
being attached to such obstacles. 



278 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



With these two exceptions the remaining rapids 
are generally caused by shingle and sand-banks, and 
diminish gradually in number until they become very 
scarce below the river Jumuapa." 

At the junction of the River Malatengo with the 
Coatzacoalcos, the course of the former river is fol- 
lowed to its confluence with the Chichihua, which 
also receives the Eiver Tarifa; and the proposal of 
the commission is to join the Tarifa by a canal to 
the River Chicapa, which flows into the Pacific by 
the lake near Tehuantepec. This communication it 
is proposed to make navigable for boats at first, but 
ultimately to be applicable for the largest ships. 

In his estimate of expense, Senor Moro takes 
that of the Caledonian Canal as his guide, and cal- 
culates that the entire cost for completing his canal 
would be about 60 millions of francs. 

" The Isthmus," observes Senor Moro, " of Te- 
huantepec belongs to the Mexican Republic, and 
forms part of the departments of Oajaca and Vera 
Cruz. According to the official reports, published 
by the Mexican Government in December 10, 1841, 
as a basis for the elections, the former department 
contains a population of 500,278 inhabitants, and 
the latter, 250,380. 

The boundaries of these two districts in this part 
of the Mexican territory are not yet definitively settled. 
The line of division is generally considered to coincide 
with the course of the River Sarabia, but this would 
only fix the limits on the left of the Coatzacoalcos, 
and by no means on the right. 

This want of a defined boundary is a natural conse- 
quence of the present state of the country. The two 
extremities of the isthmus are the only inhabited 



ISTHMUS OF TEHU ANTE PEC. 279 

portions, and they are separated from each other by 
an immense forest of astonishing beauty, which, from 
the richness of its natural produce, contains evidently 
treasures of incalculable value, but which with its 
luxuriance conceals the aspect and form of the hitherto 
unexplored soil, on which it stands." 

Robinson, an American writer, who is said to 
know the locality well, said: — 

te If, on a topographical survey of the isthmus, it 
shall be found practicable to cut a canal, there is no 
place where such an undertaking could be accom- 
plished with such ease, as in the province of Oajaca. 
In its boundaries ai*e comprehended a great part of 
the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. Its salubrity is un- 
equalled on the American continent; even its shores 
on the Pacific Ocean appear exempted from the usual 
diseases which afflict the inhabitants of the Atlantic 
and South Sea coasts. 

" The population of Tehuantepec are among the 
most active and healthy race of Indians we have ever 
seen, and the cutting of a canal through such parts 
of the isthmus, as an accurate survey shall show to 
be fittest for that purpose, could be performed with 
the greatest facility by the inhabitants of Oajaca." 

These most important advantages were also appre- 
ciated by Mr. Michel Chevalier, who lately visited 
America, and who, speaking of the isthmus, in one 
of his recent publications (Revue des Deux Mondes, 
January 1st, 1844), says: — 

"The exploration of General Orbegozo, confirmed 
the presence of a magnificent vegetation in the isthmus, 
which proves the fertility of its soil. Even previous 
to the voyage of Humboldt, the beautiful forests of 
Tarifa had attracted the attention of the court of Spain. 



280 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



The fertility of the extensive plain of Tehuantepec 
was also ascertained, no less than the healthfulness 
of the country at some distance from the sea. Besides 
it being well known that the isthmus was once densely 
populated, there seems to be no reason why it could 
not be so again.' 5 

By a decree of the Mexican Government, dated 
2nd March, 1842, Don J. de Garay is granted the 
exclusive privilege of executing the work; and, as a 
remuneration, grants him the establishment of the 
means of transport, with the right of tolls for fifty 
years, and the proprietorship of the waste lands, 
comprising a surface of upwards of 30 miles on 
either side of the line of communication. It further 
authorizes, with ample privileges, the settling of 
colonies within 50 leagues on both sides of the 
line; adding also in the same, as well as subsequent 
decrees, many other concessions of importance. And 
a proclamation was also published, declaring that on 
such a communication being effected, the transit 
should be open to all nations, and the entire passage 
considered neutral territory. 

Finally, Senor Moro sums up the supposed ad- 
vantages of this communication by contrasting it 
with those of Panama and Nicaragua, which we 
give in his own words. 

" The American isthmus extends from the Darien 
Gulf, where it is united to South America, as far as 
Tehuantepec, where North America may be said to 
commence. Different parts of this isthmus have 
appeared to offer advantages in their topographical 
form, and have invited attention to their fitness for 
the desired communication. It was however soon 
observed that only three of these localities were 



ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC. 



2S1 



worthv of consideration; namely, those which from 
the principal towns in their territory are designated 
bv way of distinction, Isthmus of Panama, of Ni- 
caragua, and of Tehuantepec. 

In respect to the first of these named places, the 
distance between the two oceans is only 65 kilo- 
metres, 40 English miles. It is impossible there- 
fore to examine the map of the American isthmus 
without being inclined to consider this point as the 
most eligible. The distance that divides the two 
seas is greater at Nicaragua, namely 150 kilometres, 
about 94 miles, but being intersected by a lake of 
vast dimensions, this point would also appear to 
offer considerable advantages. Lastly, the territory 
of Tehuantepec, forming a continued line of 220 
kilometres, nearly 140 English miles, is that which 
upon a superficial examination presents the greatest 
obstacles for the accomplishment of the object con- 
templated. 

However, notwithstanding these appearances, as 
a greater or less distance is not the only circumstance 
to be considered, it precisely happens in the three 
above-mentioned instances that the practicability of 
the work is in an inverse ratio to the shortness of the 
distance; and thus, whilst in the present state of our 
knowledge its execution is apparently impossible at 
Panama, and attended with immense difficulties at 
Nicaragua, we find it practicable and easy at Te- 
huantepec. 

The Isthmus of Panama has been from the time of 
the conquest the object of the most diligent investi- 
gations, and it is an error to suppose that the Spanish 
Government never paid any attention to this subject. 
Unfortunately not one of the explorations which were 



282 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



practised offered any satisfactory result, and the 
silence relative to this subject, which was maintained 
by the celebrated astronomers who at the close of the 
last century resided for some time in these regions, 
is the greatest proof that they had no favourable 
tidings to communicate to the world upon this im- 
portant matter. 

The form and topographical aspect of a country so 
limited in extent, and which had attracted a con- 
siderable share of public attention, could not possibly 
have remained unknown during three centuries, whilst 
it is very evident that there are not in either of the 
two opposite coasts any natural harbours to which the 
extremities of a canal could be directed. It has been 
lately asserted that all difficulties had disappeared, 
and that it would be as easy to construct a canal in 
Panama as it would be in Holland. The more recent 
report, however, of intelligent engineers, purposely 
sent thither to ascertain the facts, seems on the con- 
trary to point out the great obstacles which the terri- 
tory presents to an enterprise of this nature; but 
even supposing that the topographical aspect of the 
ground offered no difficulty whatever, there are others 
quite sufficient to render it impracticable, and which 
unfortunately cannot be remedied. 

Monsieur Michel Chevalier, while examining the 
circumstances which ought to be kept in view in 
selecting the most appropriate place for an oceanic 
communication, very justly observes that one of the 
most important is its salubrity. He says: — 

"However great might be the saving of time effected 
by steering through the isthmus, it would always be 
shunned by vessels if it were to prove a charnel-house.' 

The climate of the isthmus of Panama is acknow- 



ISTHMUS OF TEHU ANTE PEC. 



283 



ledged to be dangerous, a fact confirmed by the 
accounts of Humboldt and other writers. The fear 
of its unhealthiness was one of the causes that pre- 
vented the assembling of Congress there, after the 
emancipation of the states of Spanish America had 
been convened, in order to establish a system of 
general policy suited to the interests of the American 
nations. The same fear prevented the engineers, 
Lloyd and Falmarc, remaining in the isthmus a 
sufficient time to complete the labours of the explora- 
tion, which they undertook in 1827 and 1828, by 
order of General Bolivar, and in a succeeding expedi- 
tion Lloyd lost his life.* To this grievous cause is 
likewise to be ascribed the paucity of population and 
the want of the necessary means of existence in that 
isthmus, and as the climate does not permit the 
increase of the former, there is no possibility of 
augmenting the latter. 

The Isthmus of Panama is again being explored, 
but it has been lately estimated that even should the 
work be at all practicable its accomplishment would 
require the united efforts of the principal nations of 
the world and an expenditure of at least 200,000,000 
of francs. 

The Isthmus of Nicaragua possesses a fertile terri- 
tory, a healthy climate, and is not deficient in popu- 
lation. Towards the north the Lake of Nicaragua 
communicates with the Atlantic by means of the 
mighty River St. John, and in the south only a 
small distance separates this lake from the coast of 
the Pacific. Thus the Isthmus of Nicaragua seems 
to offer many advantages ; but upon a more minute 

* Not true. Mr. Lloyd was H. B. M. Surveyor-General in Mauritius, 
March, 1843. 



284 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



examination there appear many difficulties, and these 
of an almost insurmountable nature. 

From the report published by command of the 
government of the state of Nicaragua in reference 
to the exploration of that isthmus, effected during 
the years 1837 and 1838 by Mr. J. Bailey, it seems 
that the course of the river St. John with all its 
windings is about 150 kilometres, or 94 English 
miles, in length, six and a half of which are ob- 
structed by four rapids, caused by banks of rocks 
stretching across the whole width of the river. These 
obstacles and the long course of the river, were con- 
sidered such formidable impediments as to suggest 
the construction of a canal as an easier operation 
than that of rendering the river itself navigable. 

Towards the south, a distance of nearly 28 kilo- 
metres, or 16 miles, between the lake and the 
Pacific, the territory is occupied by a chain of moun- 
tains, which, although not very elevated, would oc- 
casion works of extraordinary magnitude. It would 
be necessary to excavate a considerable portion of it 
to a depth much greater than has been hitherto 
customary in works of this kind, and throughout 
more than five kilometres it would be indispensable 
to bore the mountains, and open a tunnel of suffi- 
cient dimensions to admit the large vessels employed 
in transatlantic navigation. The possibility of attain- 
ing such an object is not a little doubtful, especially 
if the nucleus of the chain to be bored through, 
consists, as well as the Andes of which it forms a 
part, of granite or ancient porphyry, as there is 
every reason to believe notwithstanding the super- 
ficial experiments made b}^ Bailey. 

The port of St. John south, which would be 



ISTHMUS OF TEHU ANTE PEC. 285 

sought to be reached on this side, is not adequate 
from its small dimensions to the required object, 
and moreover it appears that with the prevailing 
north and north-east winds its access is not only 
difficult but even dangerous. 

It has been calculated that this undertaking would 
cost 150 millions of francs; but even this sum is 
probably much smaller than that which would be 
required. 

The greater part of the distance which separates 
the two seas in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec is occu- 
pied oo the south by the lagoons and extensive plains, 
and on the north by the course of the Coatzacoalcos, 
so that the principal works to be executed would be 
comprised between lat. 16° 36" and 17° 3" X., in- 
cluding a spaceless than 50 kilometres, or 31 miles, 
in extent, wherein no excavation whatever exceeding 
the usual limits would be required. 

As the object of our undertaking is a division 
canal, it was essential to convey to the point of 
division a requisite quantity of waters. Those of 
the river Chicapa and its confluents husbanded with 
care would alone have sufficed, but desirous of being 
prepared for the contingency of an extraordinary 
drought we have sought out the means of obtaining 
an increase, and have so far succeeded in our object 
as not only to acquire the necessary body of water to 
feed the canal, but even a surplus quantity, which 
may be employed in increasing the currents of the 
rivers which it may be considered advisable to render 
navigable. 

Our canal might have an excellent port at each of 
its extremities, and the materials for construction 
cannot be more abundant, superior in quality, or 



286 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



better distributed. A climate remarkable for its 
salubrity favours also tbe Isthmus of Tehuantepec, 
and the departments of which it forms a part number 
a population of 750,000 inhabitants. 

The admirable fertility of the soil and the abund- 
ance of cattle and resources of all descriptions, would 
enable the vessels to renew their provisions at easy 
prices at the isthmus, therefore they might devote a 
greater portion of their hold to the storing of mer- 
chandise. 

Besides these purely local advantages, the Isthmus 
of Tehuantepec offers over those of Nicaragua and 
Panama others of a more general nature for naviga- 
tion, affording to vessels proceeding from Europe or 
the United States, which from their destination have 
not to descend to more meridianal latitudes, a com- 
munication more direct and through a more genial 
climate. On their return, vessels navigating the 
Pacific are now obliged to seek a northern latitude in 
order to escape the influence of the trade-winds, and 
for these also the course through the Isthmus of 
Tehuantepec would be much less circuitous. Lastly, 
the fresh but not dangerous north and north-easterly 
winds are common to the whole of the American 
isthmus, but Tehuantepec is not subject to the pro- 
tracted calms which at some seasons of the year 
paralyse navigation at Panama. 5 ' 



( 287 ) 



THE AZORES— FAYAL. 

The Azores, or Western Islands, nine in number, 
form a range of islands extending between 37 c and 
40 c of north latitude, and 25° and 32° of west 
longitude. From the number of birds of the eagle 
or hawk species, the Portuguese gave the islands the 
name they now bear. In 1459, the Azores began to 
be planted and colonized, and in so fertile a soil the 
inhabitants rapidly multiplied. The islands lie in 
the direct track of ships bound from the south to 
Europe, and have been the scenes of many daring 
adventures by Sir W. Raleigh, Sir F. Drake, and 
others, who waylaid the rich bullion ships that came 
to the Azores for a supply of water and provisions. 
They have also been the theatre of the contest 
between Miguel and Maria de Gloria for the crown 
of Portugal. 

These islands are of volcanic origin. A curious 
phenomenon is described in the 32nd volume of the 
Philosophical Transactions, by John Piobison, master 
of a small vessel, who arrived at Terceira on the 
10th of December, 1720, "near which island he 
saw a fire break out at sea." On his arrival at 
Angra, the governor hired his vessel for the pur- 
pose of going to view it. "On the 19th," says he, 
" at two afternoon, we made an island all fire and 
smoke. The ashes fell on our deck like hail and 
snow. The fire and smoke roared like thunder and 
great guns." He adds, that quantities of pumice- 
stone, probably common lava, and of half-broiled 
fish, were found floating on the sea in its viciuity. 



288 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



A similar phenomenon took place in February, 
1811, about half a league from the western extremity 
of the island of St. Michael. It seems to have been 
attended with nearly the usual symptoms; fire 
bursting from the sea, and ascending into the air 
like a host of sky-rockets, accompanied with vast 
volumes of smoke and showers of scoriae and lava. 
The rocks, however, did not rise above the surface 
of the water, but appeared immediately under it, 
with the waves dashing furiously round them. The 
previous soundings are said to have been 80 fathoms. 

The steamer approaches Fayal, which, though not 
the largest of the group, has the safest roadstead. 
Mr. Bullar, in his " Winter in the Azores/ 5 thus 
describes the chief town of Fayal, called Villa de 
Horta: "Its situation is the best that could have 
been chosen, both for commerce and natural beauty. 
The bay, besides being screened by high shores, has 
the island of Pico in front; which, acting as a break- 
water, secures the roadstead from southerly winds; 
while the more distant island of St. George's gives 
protection against gales from the north-west, and 
makes the harbour of Fayal a place of greater secu- 
rity than can probably be found in the other islands. 
In this respect its advantages, as far as commerce 
is concerned, are considerable, and in point of na- 
tural beauty it is equally fortunate. The town of 
Horta (or rather the city, for Don Pedro made a 
city of it), is built close to the shore. A long broad 
line of white chimneyless houses, among which 
churches, convents, and public buildings are con- 
spicuous, extends the breadth of the bay. Behind 
this line, the houses which form the outskirts of the 
city are built among orange gardens and evergreens; 



FAYAL. 



289 



beyond is the flat conical mountain into which the 
island rises, which, when we landed, was slightly 
shadowed by a canopy of clouds, and coloured bright 
by the warm afternoon sun, while in front of the 
city the water of the bay, which in the afternoon sun 
was so tender a blue that it almost seemed to have a 
bloom upon it, rolls up on a sweeping beach of dark 
grey sand, divided towards the centre by a fort and 
landing steps, which project from the shore on a 
ridge of lava. On each side of the town, and of 
this sweeping beach, are the two bluff points of the 
bay. They rise high above the level of the town, 
and are richly covered with red and brown scoriae 
and rough dark lava, upon which the sea, and 
weather are constantly acting; — the sea, by washing 
down the loose cinders and showing a fresh red 
surface; — and the weather, by staining the lava and 
watering the lichens." 

"By the time we had made our observations, the 
visit-boats had boarded us and we were at liberty to 
land. Be whiskered and mustachioed men in blue 
coats and brass buttons bowed and scraped upon the 
deck, disappeared below, rose again, bowed and 
scraped once more, smirked, went over the side and 
rowed ashore. These were some of the officials of 
Fayal who came to see that we were in proper health 
and that we had no contraband goods on board." 

The steamer goes to within half a mile of the pier. 
There is no regulated charge for landing in shore- 
boats, but a Spanish dollar per trip is a fair charge 
for a small boat employed landing passengers and 
their luggage. All luggage is required to be taken to 
the Custom House for examination, but sometimes 
this examination takes place on the pier. No charge 

u 



290 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



is made for personal luggage; but tea, tobacco, soap 
and gunpowder, which are the monopoly of the Por- 
tuguese government, are prohibited. 

All persons on landing with the intention of 
remaining, are required to present themselves or 
passports to the civil governor and mayor to be vise; 
and on leaving for a distant country, they must 
procure others at the expense of two dollars, 805 
reis; if only to an adjacent island, the expense is 
about sixpence British. 

The currency of the Azores is in millreis ; a millrea 
being equivalent to a Mexican or American dollar: 
the Spanish dollar is worth more, passing for 1200 
reis, the others for only 1000 reis. There is no bank. 

A boarding house has been recently opened for 
the reception of respectable persons; it is a clean 
and comfortable house, but cannot accommodate 
many. It is kept by an English woman, and her 
husband a Portuguese. The usual charge for living 
is a Spanish dollar per day. The house is no great 
distance from the landing-place. There is abundance 
of good water in many parts of the town. 

Only two or three asses are to be had on hire, for 
which a charge of one dollar is made per day. There 
are no wheel carriages in the island. No regular 
communication, save the Royal Mail steamers, is 
held w ith the Azores : during the fruit season several 
small schooners load for England. 

The principal street in Horta runs the whole 
length of the town in a gently curved line. It is 
clean, has many well-built houses, is well paved, 
and free from the swine and donkeys that abound at 
St. Michaels. 

"There is considerable bustle in the streets; and 



FAYAL. 



291 



they are much enlivened by the costumes of the 
country-people, and of the poorer townsfolk. A 
constant intercourse is kept up with Pico, by means 
of large ferry-boats, which ply backwards and for- 
wards every day, whenever the weather will permit; 
and as the dress of these islanders is different from 
that at Fayal, a considerable variety may occasionally 
be seen in the streets. 

" Some of the Pico peasants are dressed entirely 
in red. They have a red short jacket of linsey- 
woolsey, waistcoat, and knee-breeches of the same, 
with gaiters buttoning over the feet. These are 
either bare or covered with a leathern sandal, knotted 
over the toe, on which the hair of the animal is not 
[infrequently left." 

The church of the Jesuits has been built in a style 
of substantial excellence, far beyond that of any ot 
the churches of the islands; and the massive silver 
lamps, the censers and candlesticks, surpass even 
those to be seen in Lisbon. 

Above the shops are many latticed balconies, out 
of which inquisitive women will peep at passers-by. 
They sit on the floor, in the squatting Moorish 
position; and when any persons pass whom they 
wish to see, they lift the small lattice shutter, lean 
their heads forward and gratify their curiosity or love 
of gossip. 

The chief object of interest is the Caldeira, or 
great crater, at the western extremity of Fayal. It 
is about seven miles from the town. The road 
leading to it is extremely bad, and only to be ac- 
complished by being mounted on strong asses. (i As 
is usual," writes Mr. Bullar, " in ascending all 
mountainous ground, we passed one ridge after 



292 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



another, wishing and thinking each was the last, 
(for the dull succession of hill upon hill, clothed 
only with rough grass, was without variety,) when, 
without a moment's warning, we suddenly stopped 
on the precipitous edge of the crater. Hitherto 
there had been unvaried sunshine, and no tree or 
other object to cast a shadow; but now we suddenly 
saw beneath our feet an enormous valley, deeply 
sunk in the earth, the huge fissures, with which its 
almost perpendicular sides were cleft, being in deep 
shade, and the projecting ridges in bright light. At 
the bottom was a gloomy lake, over which one white 
sea-gull floated — the only living thing in that solitary 
place." 

"The Caldeira appears to be perfectly circular, 
and is a complete basin, the edge being regular, 
that is, as regular as these natural works ever are; 
not a mathematical circle, but a fine waving line. 
We were nearly an hour and a half in walking round 
its rim, and we thought it by far the most striking 
old crater we have yet seen in the islands." 

The island of Pico, with its peak and crater, is 
also well worthy of a visit. Mr. Bullar ascended it, 
but his vivid and beautiful description is too lengthy 
for our pages. Pico is a league and half from Fayal, 
and boats are constantly passing between the islands. 
Its apex is from 7,000 to 8,000 feet above the level 
of the sea, and though no eruption has taken place 
from its crater within the memory of man, yet a hot 
vapour is perceptible. The ascent is difficult, the 
sides of the mountain being covered with loose black 
lava,; but the view from the summit amply repays 
the traveller for his fatigue. The usual mode of 
making the ascent is to begin in the evening, and 



FATAL. 



293 



at about two thirds of the way to rough it on a bed 
of heath during the night, and by starting early 
reach the summit before sun-rise, when the magni- 
ficence of the view from so elevated a height is 
extremely delightful. 

" The hoary head of Pico preseuts a great variety 
of beauty. One afternoon it was lightly powdered 
with snow, so as to give it a tint of sober olive; with 
a larger quantity of frost or snow, and stronger and 
more direct sunshine, it has looked like dead silver: 
at another time it was tipped with fire, — at another 
it was pavilioned in flame-coloured clouds; — a few 
light mists would shut it entirely out, or, where 
transparent, give to it a wan and visionary hue; and 
in the evening, when the clouds put on a gayer 
livery, becoming rose-coloured or purple, or bronzed, 
the changes and flushes would almost remind you of 
the variable colours on a pigeon's neck, or as a poet 
has said, 

* of hues that blush aud glow 
Like angels wings.' " 

The thermometer ranges from 75° in the summer 
to 59° in the winter. The winter is of a rainy 
description, commencing about the latter end of 
November and continuing till April. March is the 
coldest and stormiest month. It is not to be con- 
sidered that the whole of the winter months are 
rainy, on the contrary, many pleasant days occur in 
December, January, and February. 

There are three medical practitioners in Fayal, one 
English and two Portuguese; Dr. Davies, and Drs. 
Medeiros and Oliveira. 

John S. Minchin, Esq., is British Vice-Consul, 
and also Agent to the Roval Mail Steam Company. 

u 2 



( 294 ) 



FAREWELL— HOMEWARDS. 

In bidding farewell to the beautiful islands and 
boundless continents at which we have touched, we 
cannot do better than use once more the words of 
Mr. Coleridge, from whom we have gathered many 
beautiful descriptions previously. 

" Beautiful islands ! where the green 

Which nature wears, was never seen 

'Neath zone of Europe ; where the hue, 

Of sea and heaven, is such a blue 

As England dreams not; where the night 

Is all irradiate, with the light 

Of stars like moons, which, hung on high, 

Breathe and quiver in the sky, 

Each its silver haze divine 

Flinging in a radiant line, 

O'er some gorgeous flower and mighty tree 

On the soft and shadowy seal 

Beautiful islands ! brief the time 

I dwelt beneath your awful clime ; 

Yet oft I see in noonday dream 

Your glorious stars with lunar beam ; 

And oft before my sight arise 

Your sky-like seas, your sea-like skies, 

Your green banana's giant leaves, 

Your golden canes in arrowy sheaves, 

Your palms which never die, but stand 

Immortal sea-marks on the strand, — 

Their feathery tufts, like plumage rare, 

Their stems so high, so strange and fair! 

Yea! while the breeze of England now 

Flings rose-scents on my aching brow, 

I think a moment I inhale 

Again the breath of tropic gale." 



And now, having left far behind us Bermuda and 



HOMEWARDS. 



295 



Fayal, and the sunny isles of the west, with their 
everlasting verdure and brilliant skies, the coldness, 
and thickening atmosphere, tell us that we are again 
approaching the rocky shores of England. What 
though her shores be dark and gloomy, and her airs 
cold and foggy, she has her happy firesides, and joy- 
ous faces clustering around them; the very keenness 
of the air is bracing and gives a freshening vigour to 
all life's pulses. Where on earth are such true 
friends, — where dwells such honest freedom ? 

Those only who have visited other peoples can 
fully appreciate the might of England's influence 
abroad: the influence of her free institutions, that 
are as watchwords to other nations; of her literature, 
which will last while language lasts; of her peaceful 
arts, more potent than the thunders of her cannon. 

England is our home. " She is the land of our 
pride and our love: the land of freedom and of 
glory; of bards and heroes, of statesmen, philoso- 
phers, and patriots; the land of Alfred and of 
Sydney, of Hampden and of Russel, of Shakspere, 
Newton, Locke, and Milton. 0 my country ! May 
thy security, liberty, generosity, and peace, be eter- 
nal? May thy children prize their birthright, and 
well guard and extend their privileges ! From the 
annals of thy renown, the deeds of thy worthies, 
the precious volumes of thy sages, may they imbibe 
the love of freedom, of virtue, of their country!" 

" Land of my birth, oh Britain, and my love. 
****** 

Beauteous Isle, 
And plenteous! what though in thy atmosphere 
Float not the taintless luxury of light, 
The dazzling azure of the Southern skies ; 



296 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



Around thee the rich orb of thy renown 

Spreads stainless, and unsullied by a cloud. 

Though thy hills blush not with the purple vine, 

And softer climes excel thee in the hue 

And fragrance of thy summer fruits and flowers, 

Nor flow thy rivers over golden beds; 

Thou in the soul of man, thy better wealth, 

Art richest : nature's noblest produce thou, 

The immortal mind in perfect height and strength, 

Bear'st with a prodigal opulence ; this thy right, 

Thy privilege of climate and of soil, 

Would I assert : nor, save thy fame, invoke, 

Or nymph, or muse, that oft 'twas dreamed of old 

By falls of waters under haunted shades, 

Her extacy of inspiration pour'd 

O'er poet's soul, and flooded all his powers 

With liquid glory : so may thy renown 

Burn in my heart, and give to thought and word 

The aspiring and the radiant hue of fire." 

MlLMAK. 



( - 7 97 ) 



SOUTHAMPTON. 

Ox the arrival of the steam ship at Southampton, 
the Company's small steamer, Princess Victoria, 
now lands the passengers and baggage free of charge. 
The luggage is taken, under charge of a custom- 
house officer, to the baggage warehouse, where its 
examination takes place, the passengers being called 
according to the list delivered by the ship's clerk to 
the custom-house officers. 

Duty is charged on cigars and other foreign manu- 
factures. 

Passengers bringing home preserves or other arti- 
cles from a British colony, should bring a certificate 
of their produce from the customs at the port, when 
the article would be charged only the low duty. 

The baggage warehouse is open for the examina- 
tion of baggage from 6 o'clock a.m. to 8 o'clock p.m., 
from 25th of March to 20th of October; and from 
8 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the remainder of the year, 
except on Sundays, on which days it is closed during 
the forenoon hours of divine service. 

Southampton is now the port of departure for 
the "West India and Peninsular and Oriental steam 
packets. It possesses many local advantages. The 
sea comes up the very broad and deep sheet of water 
to the town, called Southampton Water. It has a 
jetty or pier from which passengers may embark at 
all times of tide; a dock lately opened; and the rail- 
way carries passengers to London in three hours. 

The historians of the town assume that it was 
here, where the quay now stands, that king Canute 



298 



THE WEST INDIA GUIDE. 



planted his chair at the instance of his courtiers and 
bade the sea retire. " The sea, however, continued 
to advance without paying any regard to the royal 
mandate; and when the king found himself sur- 
rounded by water, he rose up, and thus addressed 
himself to his base flatterers : e Let not only you 
who are present, but also all the inhabitants of the 
whole world know., that weak is the power of kings, 
and vain are their orders; nor is there any worthy 
of that title except that Almighty Being who rules 
the heaven, earth, and sea.' On his return to Win- 
chester he took off his crown, and placed it on an 
image of Christ, declaring that he would never wear 
it again." 

Southampton was several times spoiled by the 
Danes, which retarded its improvement. It how- 
ever very early obtained an act of incorporation, it 
is supposed in 854 or 855. Henry II. granted it a 
charter, which was confirmed by Richard I., King 
John, Edward II. and III. 

It was from Southampton Henry V. sailed with 
his small but victorious army to claim the crown of 
France, shortly after which he gained the celebrated 
victory of Agincourt. It was here also he discovered 
the dangerous conspiracy formed against him by some 
of the English nobles, for which he condemned them 
to death. After their execution they were interred 
in an old religious house, to this day called God's- 
house, where a predecessor of the present Earl of 
Delawar erected a stone on which is inscribed their 
epitaph. 

At one time Southampton was walled in, and. some 
of the remains of old fortifications may still be seen, 
the principal of which is Bargate. This is an old 



SOUTHAMPTON, ETC. 



299 



gate or bar of curious structure, " and is by most 
antiquarians considered extremely beautiful. Its 
north front is of rather uncommon form, being a 
sort of semi-octagon, flanked with two lower semi- 
circular turrets, and crowned with large and open 
machiollations. The central arch of entrance is 
highly pointed, and adorned with a profusion of 
mouldings which now end abruptly, as a part of the 
flanks of the arch was long since cut away, to en- 
large the carriage-road, which was inconveniently 
narrow." Other remains of the walls are also to be 
seen, but they are perhaps interesting only to those 
who delight in finding history in old rubbish. We 
beg to refer such to Sir H. Englefield's Walk through 
Southampton. 



The following statistics, from Mr. Macyreggor's most 
valuable work on Commercial Statistics, will no doubt be 
interesting : — 



ST. J 


AGO DE CUBA. 




Arrivals d 


URIXG THE YEAR 1840. 




Nations. 


>"o. of Vessels. 


Tonnage. 


Spanish - 


- 132 


13,879 


British - 


- 125 - 


23,667 


American 


- 124 - 


19,912 


French - 


- 29 - - - - 


6,305 


Hanseatic Turkey- 


- 20 - 


1,698 


Dutch Colonies 


6 - 


376 


Columbian and Mexican 


3 - 


200 


Danish - 


1 - - - - 


150 




430 


66,187 



300 



STATISTICS. 



Exports in 1840. 



Coffee 

Sugar, Clayed 

Ditto, Muscovado 

Cotton 

Molasses 

Tana and Rum 

Tobacco 

Wax 

Fustic 

Cigars 

Copper Ore 



14,307,800 lbs. 

21,977 boxes of 4 quintals. 

4,915 hogsheads. 
10,429 bales of 105 lbs. 
1,600 hogsheads of 1 1 7 galls , 
1,174 pipes of 110 gallons. 

- 21,865 bales of 80 lbs. 
30,225 lbs. 

1,400 tons. 

5,000 boxes of 1,000 each. 

- 27,142 tons. 



During the last four years there has not been any great differ- 
ence in exports, with the exception of coffee and copper ore. 
The export of coffee has fallen off greatly during the last two 
years, owing to excessive drought, but copper ore has greatly 
encreased. 



PORTO RICO. 



Exports in 1839. 

Sugar - - 69,245,783 lbs. - Valued at ^2,423,602 

Coffee - - 8,538,362 lbs. - „ ^853,836 

Molasses - 3,311,719 galls. - „ ^496,759 

CottonWool- 1,183,973 lbs. - „ «89,435 



Exports in 1840. 



Sugar - - 81,793,693 lbs. 

Coffee - - 12,450,114 lbs. - 

Molasses - 3,033,034 galls. - 

Tobacco - - 4,227,484 lbs. 



Valued at ^2,862,779 
„ ^1,254,011 
^454,195 
^169,099 



( 301 ) 



APPENDIX. 



Since this work was printed, an interesting Parliamentary 
Paper has been issued by order of the House of Commons, 
intituled a Return of " Copies of the last Census of the Popu- 
lation taken in each of the British West India Islands, 
and in British Guiana : together with any information sub- 
sequently received in the Colonial Department, relative to the 
number of the Emancipated Slaves who have become Free- 
holders, the Extent of Land purchased by them, and the Sums 
of Money paid or payable for such Purchasers." 

From this Paper which runs to 46 folio pages, we have given 
an abstract of all that can interest the general reader. 

The following Table presents at one view the entire population 
of the British West India Islands, and of British Guiana, 
in most cases up to the 3rd of June, 1844. 



Jamaica 

Honduras 

Bahamas 

Barbadoes 

Grenada 

St. Vincent ... 

St. Lucia 

Tobago 

Antigua 

Montserrat 

Barbuda 

Dominica 

St. Christopher. 

>,evis 

Virgin Islands. . 

Trinidad 

British Guiana. 



Date of Census. 



3rd June, 1844 . 

nil 

1841 

3rd June, 1844 . 



15th March, 1844 
3rd June, 1844 . . 



1841 

3rd June, 1844 . . 
10th Oct. 1841 . . 



Males. Females 



181,633 



12,623 
56,004 
13,732 
12,600 
9,871 
6,152 
16,722 
3,336 
223 
10,788 
10,523 
4,418 
3,130 
30,713 
49,787 



195,800 



12,621 
60,194 
15,191 
14,648 
11,130 

7,056 
19,456 

4,029 
286 
11,681 
12,654 

5,153 

3,559 
29,102 
48,346 



Census, 



377,433 
10,000 
25,292 
122,198 
28,923 
27,248 
21,001 
13,208 
36,178| 
7,365 
509| 
22,469 
23,177' 
9,57ll 
6,689 
59,815 
98,133 



311,070 
1,901 
10,086 
83,150 
23,638 
22,266 
13,291 
11,589 
29,121 
6,401 



14,175 
19,780 
8,815 
5,135 
20,657 
82,824 



TOTAL 889,209 663,899 



* According to the Compensation Returns, 1834. 

X 



302 



APPENDIX. 



1. The first enumerated is Jamaica, which appears to 
have 9,406 inhabited houses with foot land, 644 sugar estates, 
671 coffee plantations, 378 breeding pens, 822 pens with resi- 
dences, and pasture lands, 22,703 farms and other settlements. 
Of the population, the total of which is 377,433, there are 
15,776 white, 68,529 coloured, 293,128 black. Of African 
birth, 33,519; American, 480; Belgian, 1; British, 1,689; 
Danish, 3 ; Dutch, 18 ; English, 3,450; French, 1,342 ; Ger- 
man, 615 ; Haitian, 12 : Irish, 1,298 ; Indian, 1 ; Natives, 
332,922 ; Portuguese, 2 ; Scotch, 1,523 ; Spanish, 331 ; South 
America, 225; Swede, 2. Under five years of age, 51,707; 
from five to ten years, 4,722 ; from ten to twenty years, 
62,733 ; from twenty to forty years, 121,309 ; from forty to 
sixty years, 68,499 ; over sixty years, 25,963, which is over 
13 per cent, of the whole population. Of artists there are 108 ; 
architects, 29 ; agriculturists, 61 (all females) ; bankers, 13 ; 
boatmen, 564; Clerks, 1,555; fishermen and fisherwomen, 
1,484; household servants, 20,571 ; labourers, 60,653; agri- 
cultural labourers, 132,192; lodging-house keepers, 157; 
ministers of religion, 267 ; attached to military, 104 ; military 
pensioners, 32; mariners, 97; miners, 41; merchants, 433; 
pilots, 26 ; policemen, 315 ; planters, 3,987 ; professional 
persons, 453; retail traders, 1,672; surveyors, 86; store 
keepers, 544 ; teachers, 640 ; master-tradesmen, 10,097 ; 
tavern-keepers, 59 ; in various occupations, 948 ; of no occu- 
pation, 142,831 By the return made to the Commissioners of 
Compensation in 1834, there appears to have been then of the 
slave population, 309,336, house servants, 31,453 ; labourers 
and agricultural labourers, 202,232; master-tradesmen, 14,112; 
journeymen-tradesmen, 3,716. 

2. There is no return for Honduras : the population is sup- 
posed to amount to 10,000. 

3. Bahamas. The entire population of these Islands is 
25,292, of which 6,062 are white, 18,649 coloured, 3,695 
are engaged in agriculture, 1,690 in manufactures, and 2,544 
in commerce. The above, which is the Census of 1841, is all 
that the return presents. 

4. Barbadoes. The population of the 12 parishes in this 
Island, distinguishing the ages, and whether employed or un- 
employed is all that is furnished ; the amount of inhabitants 
being 122,198. This is supposed by the Governor Sir C. E. 



APPENDIX, 



303 



Grey to fall short of the real numbers by some thousands, in 
consequence of the mode of taking the Census not being suffi- 
ciently searching and rigid. The population of Barbadoes is 
fast increasing. Sir Charles in his despatch to Lord Stanley 
relative to this and the other Windward Islands, remarks that 
" the climate everywhere improves in salubrity as cultivation 
advances. In Barbadoes it is as favourable to human life as in 
England. Means of subsistence and of comfortable existence 
are amply provided by nature for more than double the number 
of the present inhabitants. 

5. Grenada has 8 parishes, containing 28,923 inhabitants, 
besides the garrisons of Fort George, and Richmond Hill, 404 ; 
crews of vessels, 303 ; prisoners, 20, making a total of 29,650. 
This population is composed of 12 clergymen, 4 lawyers, 16 
doctors, 55 government and colonial officers, 126 merchants 
and shopkeepers, 99 clerks, 1,711 artificers, 242 resident pro- 
prietors of estates, 18 attorneys of estates, 230 managers and 
overseers, 6,763 actual labourers, 3,435 casual labourers, 389 
mariners and fishermen, 300 hucksters, 1,036 house -servants, 
1,409 seamstresses, 661 washerwomen, 4,498 variously em- 
ployed, children of tender years not employed, 5,043 ; sick and 
infirm, 876 ; under ten years of age, 7,349 ; ten to sixteen, 
3,222; sixteen to fifty, 13,810 ; fifty to sixty, 3,105; above 
sixty, 2,037. Europeans being British subjects, 407 ; natives 
of the Colony, 25,033 ; of the British West India Colonies, 
1,028; of Africa, 2,285 ; foreigners, 170 ; of these 8,800 are 
attached to the Church of England, 328 to the Church of Scot- 
land, 18,525 to the Church of Rome, 1,264 are methodists, 2 
Jews, 4 Mahometans. 

6. In St. Vincent which is composed of the parishes of 
Charlotte, St. George's, St. Andrew's, St. Patrick's, St. David's, 
the Grenadines and the towns of Kingston and Calliaqua ; there 

; are 110 sugar estates, 53 arrow-root estates, 8 towns, 44 
villages, 6,010 houses on estates, 2,120 houses in towns and 

• villages. Of the population, 27,248; there are 1,268 white, 
4,469 coloured, 25,511 black. In professions there are 296; 
labourers, 10,842; tradesmen, 1,516; domestics, 1,923. There 

' are 7,464 under ten years, 4,396 under twenty, 9,257 under 

■ forty, 4,445 under sixty, 1,686 over sixty years. 

7. St. Lucia. Of the population 21,001, comprised in five 
districts, males, 9,871 ; females, 11,130 ; thare are white, 

x 2 



304 



APPENDIX. 



1,039 ; coloured, 5,368 ; black, 14,594 ; adults, 13,310; under 
sixteen years, 7,691. 

8. Tobago. Tobago has seven parishes, and the towns of 
Scarborough and Plymouth, containing a population of 13,208, 
viz. : planters, agricultural labourers, and cultivators of land, 
for a livelihood, 4,852 ; trades and professions, 2,125 ; no 
employment, 1,201. 

9. Antigua. There are 7 parishes, containing 36,178 in- 
habitants, which is supposed to be an increase of nearly 3,000 
within four years, of which 34,311 are natives of the Island; 
474 of Great Britain and Ireland ; 1,393 elsewhere ; temporary 
absentees, 451 ; there are besides 227 of Her Majesty's troops. 
In religion there are, 16,739 of the Church of England, 183 
of the Church of Scotland, 12,688 of the Moravian Mission, 
6,563 of the Wesleyan Mission, 25 Roman Catholics. There 
are 163 official and professional men, 217 commercial men, 
338 planters, 13,202 labourers, 2,521 mechanics, 2,017 ser- 
vants, 4,217 miscellaneous, 13,503 household duties, and un- 
employed. There are 1,561 freeholders, 441 leaseholders, 
9,755 occupied and 893 unoccupied houses. The population 
in 1839 was 33,359. 

The Governor Sir Charles Fitz Roy, in his despatch to Lord 
Stanley, notes it as a curious fact of the superior longevity of 
females over males in this climate, that the number of the 
former sex, above sixty, more than doubles that of the males. 

10. Montserrat. This Island consists of 4 parishes and 
the towns of Plymouth and Kinsale. There are 7,228 natives, 
61 of other British Colonies, 15 of Foreign Colonies, 10 Afri- 
cans, 51 of the United Kingdom, males, total 7,365. There 
are 3,247 under sixteen years of age, 3,022 between sixteen 
and forty -five, 807 between forty-five and sixty, and 219 above 
sixty, 106 males and 183 females. Employed in professions 
and trades, and as artificers and handicraft men, 343 ; domes- 
tics, 289 ; agricultural labourers, 3,742 ; unemployed in fami- 
lies, 1,049 ; invalids, 148 ; infants, 1,792. In the colony there 
are 150 freeholds, 230 leaseholds, and 1,327 tenants -at -will, 
1,772 occupied and 112 unoccupied houses, 40 houses building. 

During the eleven years 1833 — 43 inclusive, there has been 
3,000 baptisms, 639 burials, 762 marriages. There are 5,487 
attached to the Church of England, 1,270 to the Wesleyans, 
604 to the Roman Catholics. 



APPENDIX. 



305 



The census of 1828, was 7,119, in 1834, the population 
was reduced to 6,165. 

11. Barbuda. Inhabitants 509, 60 absent: under sixteen, 
254 ; between sixteen and forty-five, 167 ; between forty-five 
and sixty, 54 ; over sixty, 33. 

12. St. Christopher has the town of Basseterre and 9 
parishes. Population 23,177, males, 10,523; females, 12,654; 
9,222 under sixteen years, 9,975 between sixteen and forty-five, 
3,024 between forty-five and sixty, 956 above sixty, of these 
last 312 are males and 644 are females: natives, 21,601; 
of Great Britain, 238 ; other places, 1,338 ; 8,797 agricultual 
labourers, 938 tradesmen, 13,442 others. Of the Established 
Church, 7471; Moravians, 5,457, Wesleyans, 10,186; Ca- 
tholics, 63. Freeholders, 557 ; leaseholders, 2,307 ; under 
general hiring permission, 2,763. 5,627 occupied houses, 387 
unoccupied houses, 155 houses erecting. 

13. Dominica ; comprising the town of Roseau and 10 
parishes. Population, 22,469; males, 10,596 ; females 11,604; 
off the Island, 269. Under sixteen years, 8,591 ; between 
sixteen and forty-five, 9,360 ; between forty-five and sixty, 
2,145 ; over sixty, 1,104 ; of which there are natives of the 
Island, 20,372; of the United Kingdom, 105; other places, 
1,767, unknown, 225. 794 householders, 18 leaseholders, 
4,225 occupied houses, 259 unoccupied, 101 erecting, 5 
chapels. Of the Established Church, 714 ; Roman Catholics, 
19,040; methodists, 2,531 ; Moravians, 5; unknown, 179; 
3 clergymen, 356 merchants and shopkeepers, 912 tradesmen, 
924 seamstresses, 7,705 labourers, 812 domestics, 206 laun- 
dresses, 883 planters and freeholders, 1 writing clerk, 28 
sailors, 24 soldiers, 126 fishermen, 11 boatmen, 16 school- 
masters, 2 doctors, 2 stipendiary magistrates, 1 custom house 
officer, 6,432 no employment. 

14. Nevis. Of 9,571 inhabitants, there are 2,529 heads 
of families, 4,418 males, 5,163 females. Episcopalians, 3,765; 
Wesleyans, 5,127; Noahites, 57; of other forms of worship, 168; 
attending no place of worship, 214 ; natives of Nevis, 9218 ; of 
the United Kingdom, 49 ; other places, 304. Freeholders, 
276 ; leaseholders, 530 ; tenants -at -will, 451 ; professional 
persons and tradespeople, 915 ; domestic servants and persons 
employed in domestic matters, 1,386; labourers, 4,374 ; per- 
sons unemployed, 2,895 There are 128 unoccupied houses 



306 



APPENDIX. 



and 16 erecting. 652 males and 468 females are known to 
be absent from the Island. Under sixteen, 2,967 ; between 
sixteen and forty-five, 3,812 ; forty-five to sixty, 1,307 ; over 
sixty, 599. 

15. Virgin Islands. They are inhabited as follows : Tor- 
tola, 4,027; Virgin Gorda, 764 ; Joes Van Dykes, 1,158; 
Anegada, 345 ; Beef Island, 68 ; Quaymanos, 65 ; Guana 
Island, 46 ; Peter's Island, 143 ; Salt Island, 83 ; in all 
6,689. 

16. Trinidad, in 8 districts, had 60,319 inhabitants on 
3rd July, 1844, of whom 30,713 are males and 29,102 are 
females, 906 are natives of Great Britain, 33,118 of Trinidad, 
12,106 of British Colonies, 869 of Foreign Europe, 3,623 of 
Foreign Colonies, 7,287 Africans, 1,896 of other countries, 
military including women and children, 504. Under five, 
6,583 ; five to ten, 6,519 ; ten to twenty, 9,701 ; twenty to 
thirty, 13,391 ; thirty to forty, 10,909 ; forty to fifty, 8,917 ; 
fifty to sixty, 3,867 ; sixty to seventy, 2,052 ; seventy to 
eighty, 646 ; above eighty 230. There are 25,505 labourers, 
504 military including women and children, 35 public officers 
and servants, 38 advocates, 51 physicians, 41 ecclesiastics, 9 
surveyors and architects, 1,656 proprietors and planters, 541 
merchants, 957 shopkeepers and clerks, 77 schoolmasters, 91 
police, 138 engineers and smiths, 1,837 carpenters and coopers, 
409 masons, 2,126 seamstresses, 1,854 domestics, 134 bakers, 
24 saddlers, 34 painters, 1,097 laundresses, 53 butchers, 210 
tailors, 4 naturalists, 1 botanist, 45 goldsmiths, 87 shoemakers, 
5 shipwrights, 26 sawyers, 132 cigar makers, 148 fishermen, 
100 carters, 295 mariners, 118 disbanded soldiers, 17 mattress 
makers, 9 midwives and sick nurses, 17 printers, 8 watch- 
makers, 10 sailmakers, 2 barbers, 5 tavern-keepers, 11 coach 
builders, 12 musicians, adults and children without occupa- 
tion, 838. 

17. British Guiana contains a population of 98,133, and 
is divided into rural and urban districts, the former distin- 
guished as Berbice, Demerara, and Essequebo, and the latter 
as Georgetown and New Amsterdam. 

Berbice has a population of 16,759, 8,818 males, 52*61 
per cent., and 7,941 females, 47*38 per cent., of these there 
are under five years, 2,006, 12*8 per cent. ; five to ten years, 
1,765, 10*53 per cent. ; ten to twenty-four years, 2,269, 13*24 



APPENDIX. 



307 



per cent. ; twenty to thirty years, 3,543, 21*14 per cent. ; 
thirty to forty years, 2,657, 15*83 per cent. ; forty to fifty 
years, 1,972, 11*76 per cent. ; fifty and upwards, 2,484, 14*22 
per cent. 

Demerara has a population of 37,834, males, 19,629, 51*88 
per cent. ; females, 18,205, 48*11 per cent. ; of these there 
are under five years, 5,069, 13*39 per cent. ; five to ten years, 
3,702, 9*78 per cent. ; ten to twenty-four years, 4,953, 13*09 
per cent. ; twenty to thirty years, 7,932, 20*96 per cent. ; 
thirty to forty years, 6,086, 16*08 per cent. ; forty to fifty 
years, 4,340, 11*47 per cent. ; fifty and upwards, 5,560, 
14*69 per cent. 

Essequebo has a population of 76,087, 39,694 males, 52*16 
per cent. ; 36,393 females, 47*83 per cent. ; of these there are 
under five, 2,802, 13*03 per cent. ; five to ten years, 1,945, 
9*05 per cent. ; ten to twenty-four years, 2,856, 13*1 per 
cent. ; twenty to thirty years, 4,854, 22*57 per cent. ; thirty 
to forty years, 3,841, 17*87 per cent. ; forty to fifty yeai*s, 
2,402, 11*17 per cent. ; fifty and upwards, 2,719, 12*65 per 
cent. 

Georgetown has 18,586 inhabitants, 8,483 males, 45*64 per 
cent. ; females, 10,103, 54.35 per cent. ; of these there are 
under five years, 1,957, 10*53 per cent. ; five to ten years, 
2,152, 11*58 per cent.; ten to twenty years, 3,457, 18*58 
per cent. ; twenty to thirty years, 4,455, 23*97 per cent. ; 
thirty to forty years, 3,009, 16*21 per cent. ; forty to fifty 
years, 1,831, 9*85 per cent. ; fifty and upwards, 1,572, 8*45 
per cent. 

Neiv Amsterdam numbers 3,460, 1,610 males, 46*53 per 
cent. ; females, 1,850, 53*47 per cent. ; under five years, 321, 
9*27 per cent. ; five to ten years, 405, 11*58 per cent. ; ten 
to twenty years, 702, 20*29 per cent. ; twenty to thirty years, 
808, 23.35 per cent. ; thirty to forty years, 543, 15*69 per 
cent. ; forty to fifty years, 365, 10*54 per cent. ; upwards of 
fifty years, 308, 8*90 per cent. Of the total population there 
is a preponderance of 1,441, males over females. 

Of the population there are natives of the colony, 65,319 ; 
of Africa, 15,856 ; of West Indies, 9,899 ; of Great Britain, 
2,172; Europe, including Malta, 445; Madeira, 2,619; of 
British America and United States, 159 ; of East Indies, 343 ; 
on sea and not otherwise specified, 1,321. 



308 



APPENDIX. 



It is only in the colony of British Guiana that any report 
has been made of the emancipated Negroes who have become 
purchasers of land. It may be interesting to note a few ex- 
amples. In the county of Berbice, district of the Courantyne 
River and Coast, a village has been formed of 20 labourers, 
who have purchased 166 acres for 20,000 dollars. In the same 
district another community of labourers has purchased from 
Government 500 acres for ^500, 37 of whom have paid up 
their quota. On the east coast of Berbice, 20 labourers in 
community have also purchased 500 acres for 4,383 dollars. 
On the River Berbice, 3 labourers have bought from Government 
337 acres for ,£ J 337. At Ithaca, 164 have purchased 500 acres 
for 10,000 dollars. In this county there are 20 such pur- 
chasers, on an average of the same description. In the County 
of Demerara, on the Sea Coast from Mahaica to Demerara, 
168 labourers purchased 500 acres for 80,000 dollars. In the 
same district 500 acres were secured for 50,000 dollars by 128 
labourers ; 400 acres by 145 labourers for 22,000 dollars ; 
300 acres by 88 labourers for 39,000 dollars. On the left 
bank of Canal No. 2, two labourers have purchased 250 acres 
for 11,000 dollars, and are disposing of it in plots to others 
of from one-half to 2 acres each. On the west coast of Deme- 
rara, 4 labourers have purchased 125 acres for 6,000 dollars. 
In this county there are various leases of plots of from half an 
acre to 25 acres each. 

In the county of Essequebo, on the Pomeroon River, and 
plantation of Hackney, 1 labourer purchased 100 acres for 
£100, who has subdivided it among others. In this county the 
plots are chiefly leased in spaces of from half an acre to 4 acres. 

In most cases these settlements of the emancipated Negroes 
are in the neighbourhood of places of worship, either the Esta- 
blished Church or of Dissenters. 

In the colony the number of plots purchased by emancipated 
Negroes up to 17th December, 1844 amounted to 4,051 ; 1,883 
of these had received transports, 2,168 had not received trans- 
ports, 4,813 cottages had been erected, and were occupied by 
18,511 souls. 

From 1817 till the date of the last census, the Creole Natives 



APPENDIX. 



309 



have been greatly on the increase, while there has been a cor- 
responding decrease in the Africans. In 1817 there were in 
British Guiana 42,224 African slaves or 54*72 per cent, of the 
coloured population ; in 1832 there were 22,571, shewing a 
decrease of 19,653, reducing the percentage to 34*45. In 1841 
there was a further diminution of 6,715, leaving the African 
population at 15,856 or 19*54 per cent. The Creoles in 1817 
numbered 39,439 or 45*28 per cent. ; in 1832, 42,946 or 
65*55 per cent., shewing an increase of 8,007. In 1841 the 
proportion was further increased 22,373, bringing up the num- 
ber of Creoles to 65,319 or 80*46 per cent. In 1817 there 
was an excess of Africans over Creoles of 7,285 ; in 1832 an 
excess of Creoles over Africans of 20,735. In 1841 the excess 
was again increased to 49,463, so that the Creole population 
was then 65,319, while the African was but 15,856, making a 
total of the coloured population of 81,175. 

The Report of the Commissary of population recommends 
the adoption of measures towards the enforcement of the use 
of surnames. This is becoming of great importance in con- 
sequence of the acquirement of property by many individuals, 
and on other considerations. 



( 310 ) 



APPENDIX II. 



An Account of the Imports into the United Kingdom of Sugar, 
Molasses, Rum, Coffee, and Cocoa, from the West Indies 
and British Guiana, distinguishing each Colony, for the 
Year 1844. 



COLONIES 
From which Imported. 



Antigua 

B ar badges 

DoMIxVICA 

Grenada 

Jamaica 

montserrat 

Nevis 

St. Christoi'Her 

St. Lucia 

St. Vincent 

Tobago 

Tortola 

Til (N i dad 

Bahamas 

Bermudas 

De.merara 

Berbice 

Honduras (British Ter.) 

TOTAL 



Quantities Imported into the United Kingdom 
from the British West Indies and British 
Guiana, in the Year 1844. 



Sagai 



act. 



225 
328, 

52. 

78 
529 

12. 

29. 

H9: 

69 
135 
49 

274 



447 

95, 



2,453,050 



Alula 



104,243 
51,134 
11,140 
7,874 
728 
4,357 
11,200 
31,713 
8,034 
41,0S5 
13,740 
569 
105,130 



179,146 
9,493 



5?9,59S 



Rum. 



Coffee. 



aallons. 
Including- 
over proof 
22,513 
436 
21,128 
112,620 
.> 146,886: 7; 
4,36 i I 
15,0791 
80,792! 
11,208 
40,560 
137,587 
715 
4,052 

375 
874,042 
34,256 



2,506,625 



lbs. 

425 
24,050 
71,206 
1,148 
632,483 



9,993 
33,814 



234,127 
177,578 
64 

733,029 
372,330 
31 



9,290,278 



Cocoa. 



2 

1,746 
544,253 
158 



05 
17,242 
8,316 

1,321 
2,526,702 

9,555 
10,209 



3,120,480 



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